Farmland and pastures across Central Asia are far less productive after decades of monocropping. Main photo: Depleted land needs more water, which is already insufficient across much of Central Asia. (David Trilling) The soils of Central Asia yield far less meat, dairy and produce today than…

De-Nazarbayevification is a useful electoral strategy, which may explain why the news was announced by Kazakhstan’s ruling party ahead of polls next month. Main photo: Bolat Nazarbayev (public domain) Authorities have apparently confiscated vast swathes of land from the unpopular brother of…

Main photo: Fires blaze at a recreational center on Lake Alakol. The expansion of human activity toward forested areas, such as spa resorts and dachas, endangers Kazakhstan's limited forest land and the biodiversity that accompanies it.   ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- By the time they saw fierce flames…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan will hold the constitutional referendum on June 5, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced on Thursday in his video address to the nation. Main photo: President Tokayev announces the date of the referendum in the video address. Photo credit: Akorda “A general vote by…

On April 22, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev highlighted the need to address the issues of crucial importance to the society and state relating to the ownership of land and land resources during a meeting on amendments and additions to the Constitution of the Republic, the press…

A small but determined group of activists made Nur-Sultan keep its promise. Main photo: An oasis in the “concrete jungle.” (courtesy Bauyrzhan Sadiev)Residents of Nur-Sultan who rallied to defend a patch of designated parkland from high-rise developments have scored a victory, setting a rare…

Main photo: Farmers at a FAO anti-desertification project in Burkina Faso, one of 11 countries targeted by the Global Environment Fund Initiative The global launch of a $104 million initiative signals an ambitious effort by a range of partners to safeguard drylands in the context of climate…

BISHKEK (TCA) — Territorial disputes in Central Asia do not allow countries of the region to take a step towards greater cooperation and increase regional integration. We are republishing the following article on the issue, written by independent researcher Ermek Baisalov and originally published…

Main photo: Demonstrators rally against land reform rally in Almaty on April 24. NUR-SULTAN -- Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev has signed into law a long-debated and sensitive bill that bans selling and leasing agricultural land to foreigners in the oil-rich Central Asian state. According to…

Fear of China fueled the activism, though frustrations had accumulated over stagnant living conditions in the provinces. Main photo: Hands off (David Trilling) Kazakhstan is on the cusp of imposing a permanent ban on the sale and lease of agricultural land to foreigners. It is a rare victory for…

Today in the building of the Central Communications Service Olga Shiyan, Executive Director of Transparency Kazakhstan, presented the results of the study «Monitoring the state of corruption in Kazakhstan for 2020», implemented with the assistance of the United Nations Development Program in…

The collapse of the Soviet Union gave rise to a vast archipelago of unclaimed man-made objects and land in Russia and beyond. Thousands upon thousands of roads, bridges, water pipes, gas pipes, power grids, cemeteries, farmland, and more have passed from state hands to no one in the last 26 years.…