Kazakh zoos earn record 2.6 billion tenge
2.6 million people visited Kazakhstan’s zoos and an oceanarium in 2025, Qazinform News Agency cites Energyprom.kz.
Although slightly lower than the record 2.8 million in 2024, attendance remains well above previous years.
Their revenue reached a record 2.6 billion tenge, up 23.5% year-on-year.
Compared to 2015, the sector’s income has grown by 2.5 times.
Nearly 89% of visitors came from Almaty up to 1.1 million, 716,200 from Shymkent and 517,400 from Astana.
In 2025, Kazakhstan operated 8 zoos and one oceanarium.
The number of petting zoos fell sharply from 14 in 2017 to just 3 in 2025 due to the Law on Responsible Treatment of Animals, which banned contact and mobile zoos starting January 2025.
Zoos functioned in 7 out of 20 regions, with facilities in Abai, Akmola, Karaganda, East Kazakhstan, Almaty, Shymkent, and two in Astana (including the oceanarium).
Visitor behavior remains a concern. The Almaty Zoo reported incidents of people throwing stones into animal enclosures and violating feeding rules.
As of 2025, Kazakhstan’s zoos and oceanarium housed 14,400 animals, birds, and fish.
