The President of Kazakhstan outlined five priorities for the country's development.

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev spoke at a joint session of the parliamentary chambers, marking the end of the parliamentary session and the entry into force of the country’s new Constitution.

The head of state called the event historic: starting tomorrow, the bicameral Parliament will replace the unicameral Kurultai. According to Tokayev, over thirty years of the professional Parliament’s work, approximately 3,500 laws were adopted, with each tenth of them introduced by the deputies themselves. In just the last three years, more than 300 key laws, including constitutional ones, were adopted.

The President thanked deputies of all convocations and specifically highlighted the current composition of the Parliament, calling it one of the strongest in the country’s recent history.

Among the key areas for further development, Tokayev identified five blocks.

The first is a new architecture of state power. The formula “Strong President – Influential Kurultai – Accountable Government” has received institutional confirmation. A new constitutional body, the Kazakhstan People’s Council, is being established, which will unite representatives of maslikhats, public councils, and NGOs, and will take over the functions of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan.

The second is the transition to a new economic model. GDP growth at the end of last year amounted to 6.5%, the volume of the economy exceeded $300 billion for the first time, and GDP per capita rose to $15,000. Inflation over the first five months of the current year decreased to 10.4 percent. From 2023 to 2025, 540 industrial projects worth 3.7 trillion tenge were implemented, and in the next two years, plans are in place to launch more than 200 additional production facilities.

The third is strengthening energy and transport infrastructure. A national project for the modernization of energy and utilities is being launched with funding exceeding one trillion tenge this year. The country’s gasification rate is planned to increase from the current 65% to 80%. By 2029, more than 13 gigawatts of new energy capacity are scheduled to be commissioned. Three new combined heat and power plants will be built in Kokshetau, Semey, and Ust-Kamenogorsk, and construction of the first nuclear power plant will begin next year. The construction of a new airport in Astana and the creation of a national cargo airline have also been announced.

The fourth is building a digital state. Kazakhstan has adopted the Digital Code and the law on artificial intelligence, and the Digital Qazaqstan strategy has been approved. The e-commerce market has grown nearly eightfold over five years, reaching 3.7 trillion tenge. The “Data Centers Valley” mega-project is being launched to attract major technology corporations.

The fifth is the development of human capital. This year, more than 19 trillion tenge—over half of the budget—is planned to be allocated to science, education, culture, healthcare, sports, and social support. Under the law on the return to the state of illegally acquired assets, more than one trillion tenge has been returned to the country, and part of these funds was used to build 450 social facilities. The “National Fund – for Children” program has brought $2.3 billion to the accounts of 6.5 million children.

Tokayev announced that he would sign a decree on holding elections for the Kurultai and urged that the upcoming electoral campaign be conducted openly and honestly. The President also supported the decision of the AMANAT party to join the new “Adilet” party.

Source: akorda.kz