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Kazakhstan’s Minister of Science and Education Sayasat Nurbek is expanding international cooperation to provide new educational opportunities for Kazakh youth while boosting economic development.
In less than two years, Kazakhstan has managed to attract more than 20 renowned universities to set up branches in the country. After strengthening its ties with European universities, Kazakhstan is now aiming to establish new research institutions in the near future.
Nurbek believes that Kazakhstan has the potential to become an academic hub in the region with its high-quality education. He said: “We are actively promoting this huge market to all our partners, including European partners who hold a special place in our priorities.”
“Greater Eurasia is one of the fastest growing regions in the world with a population of 2 billion,” said Nurbek. “More than half of these people are talented young people, but their access to quality education is very limited. This is a huge challenge.”
Bolashak Scholarship Program
The pioneer of Kazakhstan’s education is the Bolashak scholarship program, which has awarded scholarships to more than 12,000 students, allowing them to study at the world’s top universities. “More than 1,200 Bolashak scholarship winners have completed their studies at European universities,” Nurbek said.
Launched in 1993, the program has played an important role in sending Kazakhstan’s best and brightest students abroad, primarily to European countries.
“The country is setting ambitious goals to restructure its economy, modernize its political system, and build a truly fair and inclusive society. It is particularly important to invest in education and create ample opportunities for citizens to realize their own potential,” Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted in a recent speech.
“I am confident that the graduates of the Bolashak program and all young professionals across the country will contribute to the large-scale, comprehensive transformation of Kazakhstan,” he said.
Popular European universities
Minister Nurbek told Euractiv: “Germany, the Czech Republic and France have been popular destinations for our Bolashak scholars.” Notably, he noted that Germany leads with 437 graduates, followed by the Czech Republic (261) and France (189). The students’ fields of specialization are diverse, with the largest number of them in the humanities at 48.7%, followed by technology (40.3%), medical studies (8.1%) and creative subjects (2.9%).
Minister Nurbek’s vision for development extends beyond scholarships, “Our goal is to position Kazakhstan as an educational hub in Central Asia,” he said.
German-Kazakhstan Institute for Sustainable Engineering
Last year, during the visit of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the two sides signed several agreements. Among them, the establishment of the Kazakh-German Institute of Sustainable Engineering (KINI) at the Caspian Yesenov University of Technology and Engineering in Aktau, Kazakhstan, was an important milestone. The German university established a partnership with the local university in Aktau.
KINI will train technical experts in the best engineering practices to meet the needs of large-scale energy projects implemented in the region, including green hydrogen production. The first batch of students embarked on this journey last year.
The educational program is structured as 2+1+1: students spend the first two years studying in Aktau, followed by one year of intensive studies in Germany. In the fourth year, these students will be actively involved in the direct operations of the German-Swedish company Svevind.
State-of-the-art factory
The company is building a state-of-the-art plant to produce 2 million tonnes of green hydrogen. The total cost of the project is estimated at €50 billion, reflecting the scale and importance of the initiative.
It is worth noting that the plant has a green electricity production capacity of 40 GW, and this clean energy will be exported to the Asian and European markets.
Beyond its environmental impact, the Svevind project holds great promise for the local economy. During the construction phase, the project will create approximately 3,500 jobs, thereby increasing employment opportunities.
On June 21, Minister Nourbeck also signed an agreement with the German University of Applied Sciences Anhalt in the fields of telecommunications and engineering.
(Author: Nicole Verbeeck I Editor: Brian Maguire | Euractiv Promotional Lab ）
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