Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan has made significant economic progress over recent decades. Health has risen on the policy agenda with a number of sector reforms introduced to modernise the system and improve the health of the population. This review uses globally recognised frameworks and indicators to evaluate Kazakhstan’s overall health system as well as its primary care and hospital sectors. Data provided by Kazakhstan is used to benchmark the various dimensions of performance with that of OECD countries. While the review points to notable successes, Kazakhstan continues to face challenges to improve the accessibility, equity, and efficiency of health services. To strengthen health system performance, the report points to key actions that Kazakhstan should consider prioritising in the coming years.

This review examines the reforms undertaken by the government of Kazakhstan in the area of public governance and evaluates their impact on the powers and responsibilities of subnational levels of government. It places particular emphasis on finding the right allocation of roles and responsibilities among different levels of government, and on using decentralisation as a means to increase self-reliance, civic participation, accountability, and enhanced capacity at the local level. The report also offers a number of recommendations for further strengthening the role of local executive bodies and democratising some aspects of local government.

This review examines the recent reforms undertaken by the government of Kazakhstan in the area of public governance and evaluates their impact on the effectiveness, strategic capacity and accountability of the state. The review places particular emphasis on strategic planning, policy and programme evaluation, risk management, devolution and functional reviews, privatisation and the oversight of state-owned enterprises – all areas in which the government has taken or considered significant initiatives. The report offers a number of recommendations for further progress towards an effective, strategic and accountable state.

The government of Kazakhstan has shown a strong commitment to enhancing transparency, accountability and participation in the policy-making process, and has taken important steps towards implementing open government. However, further efforts are need to ensure the success and long-term sustainability of Kazakhstan’s open government reforms. This review provides an overview of the cultural, economic, historical and political context for open government reforms. It examines ongoing efforts, identifies the remaining challenges and assesses the measures put in place by Kazakhstan’s authorities to address them in order to translate the reforms into tangible results. Finally, the report looks at the environment for effective citizen engagement and its potential to improve service delivery and policy making. It provides recommendations for concrete actions Kazakhstan can take to fully implement open government reforms.

This report discusses the main results of a project on how to reduce air pollution from urban public transport in Kazakhstan, by providing an analysis for designing a green public investment programme in this sector. This sector represents an opportunity for Kazakhstan to address key objectives in its environmental and climate-related policies as part of the country’s ambitions to transition to a green economic path of development. The investment programme is also designed to support the modernisation of the urban transport fleet in the country and stimulate the domestic market to shift to modern buses powered by clean fuels. The programme is foreseen to be implemented in two phases: the first covers the cities of Kostanay and Shymkent and the second, all major urban centres in Kazakhstan. These investments are expected to result in significant air improvement.

This report discusses the main results of a project on how to reduce air pollution from urban public transport in Kazakhstan, by providing an analysis for designing a green public investment programme in this sector. This sector represents an opportunity for Kazakhstan to address key objectives in its environmental and climate-related policies as part of the country’s ambitions to transition to a green economic path of development. The investment programme is also designed to support the modernisation of the urban transport fleet in the country and stimulate the domestic market to shift to modern buses powered by clean fuels. The programme is foreseen to be implemented in two phases: the first covers the cities of Kostanay and Shymkent and the second, all major urban centres in Kazakhstan. These investments are expected to result in significant air improvement.