New amendments to the rules for establishing and running non-governmental or non-profit organizations will be put for discussion in the second half of 2026, Kanat Iskakov, the deputy minister of culture and information, said at a government briefing on July 24.
The new rules will likely result in more stringent checks over these organizations’ scope, the practices, and the accounting.
“The area of work of non-governmental and non-profit organizations requires adjustment, especially legislative. This goes not only for licensing issues, but also for things like charitable events,” Iskakov said.
A case of alleged embezzlement of NGO funds is currently making the headlines in Kazakhstan. Yesterday, the prosecutor asked for the former head of the Biz Birgemiz non-profit to be sentenced to 10 years in prison.
This perhaps prompted the government to tighten the screws over the sector.
“"We will need to determine the responsibility of the citizens who head these organizations, their accountability to society and the transparency of incoming income and expenses,” Iskakov said, without explicitly mentioning the ongoing court case.
At a National Kurultai meeting in mid-March, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev had said that legislation on NGOs should have been improved in an effort “to increase the effectiveness of state social procurement.”
Tokayev also argued that international NGOs “have grossly interfered in [countries’] internal affairs.” According to him, they did so by promoting “so-called democratic moral values, including LGBT.” Tokayev added that US President Donald Trump’s policies need to be supported and called for a review of the domestic legislation on NGOs.
With reporting by Tamara Vaal.
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