Monday, December 12, 2011 – Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev turned down a “People’s Hero” award Saturday and instead suggested the creation of a new national holiday.

Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev has urged countries that de facto possess nuclear weapons to assume responsibility for non-proliferation of such weapons. Speaking at the opening of the International Forum for A Nuclear-Free World in Astana on Wednesday, President Nazarbayev said that in the absence of efficient control over nuclear arms races in South Asia and the Middle East, countries should take responsibility for preventing nuclear technology from landing in the hands of international terrorists.

Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev has dissolved parliament and called a snap election for mid-January. The move, which was widely expected after he won April’s presidential poll, will dilute the governing party’s monopoly. Mr Nazarbayev’s Nur Otan party, which has 98 of the 107 parliamentary seats, is widely expected to win most seats.

Tax revenue will make 97.3 percent in income of the national budget for 2012. Minister of Finance Bolat Zhamishev has told introducing the draft Laws “On the national budget for 2012-2014″ and “On guaranteed transfer from the National Fund of Kazakhstan for 2012-2014″ in the Majilis.

“Productivity 2020 program is one of the main components of forced industrialization program of Kazakhstan,” Vice Premier of Kazakhstan – Ministry of Industry and New Technologies Asset Issekesehv told today following the meeting on Productivity 2020.

An additional five billion tenge is envisaged for allocation to support grain exports in the 2011 Kazakhstan budget, the Kazakh Finance Minister Bolat Zhamishev said at a governmental meeting on Tuesday, Trend reports. “In addition, five billion tenge will be allocated from the budget to reduce the cost of Kazakh grain supplies for export,” Zhamishev said, presenting the project to clarify the national budget for 2011 at a government meeting in Astana.

“According to the revised forecast Kazakhstan plans this year to increase volume of industrial output by 6% exceeding the earlier projected index by 1.2 percentage points,” Minister of Economic Development and Trade Kairat Kelimbetov stated introducing the revised socio-economic development forecast for 2011.

17.08.2011. A special Executive Committee meeting by the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC), dedicated to the humanitarian crisis in Somalia, will began its work in Istanbul on Wednesday, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesman Ilyas Omarov told Trend. “Kazakhstan will coordinate efforts to assist this Muslim country in Africa, as the Chair of the organization”, Omarov said.

17.08.2011. Central Asian Trade Forum with participation of Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbayeva has started in Bishkek. The representatives of the regional and international export companies, governmental structures of the region, small and medium businesses of Central Asia gathered to discuss the international trade practice, export marketing, product certification, taxes for exporting companies, export and banking sector, international trade.

17.08.2011. Kazakh Minister of Transport and Communications Berik Kamaliyev and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Kazakhstan Lee Buyng-hwa met in Astana Tuesday; Kazinform refers to the Transport Ministry’s press service.

17.08.2011. Astana “Green Bridge” Initiative has huge potential, Alexandre Keltchewsky, Head of OSCE Center in Astana said at a final meeting on preparation of “Green Bridge” Partnership Program on Wednesday in Astana. “The Astana initiative covers all sorts of problems of the modern world. They are promotion of green growth, low-carbon development, climate change, biodiversity, sustainable development, environmental safety and other topics. However, the initiative is largely aimed at preventing adverse events, than eliminating the environmental damage that has already taken place,” notes Keltchewsky.

16.08.2011. Extremist and terrorist organizations have no future in Kazakhstan, says CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha. “There are signs of extremist activity, and some information on the activity of terrorist organizations in Kazakhstan. But it is absolutely wrong to talk of revolution in Kazakhstan. This is a very stable country with a good atmosphere, strong law enforcement structure and extensive security system,” Bordyuzha noted during a video press conference at RIA Novosti news agency.

12.08.2011. Informal meeting of the CSTO heads of states started in the Astana Rixos hotel. Presidents of Russia, Belarus, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Kazakhstan gathered to discuss the topical issues of the regional security in the CSTO’s area of responsibility, as well as the situation in Northern Africa and in the Middle East.

11.08.2011. Wednesday, August 10, 2011 – Kazakhstan opened its country’s first laboratory devoted to cloud computing research in the southern financial capital of Almaty, the Xinhua news agency reported. The lab will focus its research on creating open source systems and cloud computing, and will also train specialists in information technology fields.

30.06.2011. Kazakhstan plans to boost gold production to more than 70 tonnes by 2015 from an expected 20 tonnes this year, said President Nursultan Nazarbayev. “By 2015 we can achieve gold production of more than 70 tonnes and become one of the world’s larger producers of the metal,” he told an international conference.

29.06.2011. Kazakh and South Korean firms plan to complete construction by 2015 of a major new power plant to help meet an electricity shortage in southern Kazakhstan, the companies involved in the project said on Monday.

The Pure Play on China
A commodity cornucopia. Kazakhstan has some 3% of the world’s raw materials, and only 0.2% of its population. Its natural resource base of over $300,000 per capita is therefore among the highest in the world, twice the level of Russia, and higher than Australia.

It’s a little-known – and slightly ironic – fact that when Lehman Brothers exploded last year it did so as the proud owner of 500,000 pounds of yellowcake uranium: enough to make a nuclear bomb.

The banking system in Kazakhstan has been severely hit by the global financial crisis and over the past 18 months the authorities there have taken a number of steps to support it, culminating in the decision announced in November 2008 that Samruk-Kazyna, Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund, would invest US$3.5 billion in the four “systemic” banks – JSC Halyk Bank, JSC Kazkommertsbank, JSC BTA Bank and JSC Alliance Bank. Like many other countries, including the United Kingdom, Kazakhstan also enacted legislation enabling the authorities to take emergency measures in relation to its banks.

Minister for Europe, Baroness Kinnock, visited Kazakhstan on 7 – 8 September. The visit highlighted the strong bilateral relationship between the UK and Kazakhstan.

Astana. September 2. Kazakhstan Today – Kazakhstan is a leader among the CIS countries in the index of efficiency of the anti-crisis policy. The President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, informed during the opening ceremony of III session of the Parliament of Kazakhstan of IV convocation on Tuesday, the agency reports.

Astana. September 10. Kazakhstan Today – The presidency of Kazakhstan in OSCE is a unique chance to demonstrate the country’ competence. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Kanat Saudabayev, stated in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the first session of the state commission concerning the presidency of Kazakhstan in OSCE, the agency reports.

Almaty. September 11. Kazakhstan Today – Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation signed intergovernmental cooperation agreements in the field of energy and military-technical spheres. The ceremony of signing of the documents took place during the forum of inter-regional cooperation in the presence of the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and the President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, the agency reports citing ITAR-TASS.