Weekly Review: Spring sowing campaign started in Kazakhstan
On Monday, May 23, Prime MinisterKarim Massimov held a conference on socio-economic development of Zhezkazgan municipality of Karaganda region during which he charged to establish a working group for solution of the existing problems. The conference participants noted necessity of further development of mineral resources base, ore-mining industry and implementation of the projects under the State program of forced industrial-inovative development and the projects on development of the transport infrastructure, social sphere and modernizaion of housing and utilities sector.
On the same day the Majilis deputies heard the Government's report on 2010 budget performance. According to Minister of Finance Bolat Zhamishev, budget revenues plan was performed by 106 per cent in 2010 that is KZT 3 trln 729 bln 200 mln. The share of tax revenues makes 55.9 per cent. The assets of the National Fund of Kazakhstan were increased by KZT 2 trln 704 bln 400 mln. Budget expenditures in 2010 were performed by 99.1 per cent.
On May 24 Minister of Agriculture Assylzhan Mamytbekov presented a draft set of measures on stabilization of prices for basic food commodities at the Government's telephone session. "It is necessary to note that there was set a task on regulation, stabilization of prices, not their fixation or freezing. We cannot and should not deal with increase in price connected with fluctuations in the world food market, because it undermines economy of our domestic manufacturers," A Mamytbekov said. The set consists of operative and system measures which are aimed at prevention of speculative and unjustified price increase. "We evaluate all these measures on stabilization funds to the amount of KZT 17 bln," the Minister noted. According to Mamytbekov, implementation of the operative measures will give a result this winter. Besides, the Ministry of Agriculture thinks that it is necessary to make a breakthrough in construction of greeneries.
At the same session of the Government Prime Minister Karim Massimov proposed to use empty storages of the Emergencies Ministry as vegetable stores. According to Minister of Agriculture Assylzhan Mamytbekov, vegetable storage capacity deficit is about 300 thousand tons for today. Construction of vegetable stores with the capacity of 60 thousand tons under the program of KazAgro Holding is planned to cover 20 percent of the deficit. The Minister of Emergencies Vladimir Bozhko informed that his ministry had idle fuel storage tanks and empty refrigeration units in Almaty and Karaganda. Premier Massimov urged his first deputy Umirzak Shukeyev to coordinate the issue with storages together with the Ministry of Agriculture, akimats and Ministry of Emergencies.
Besides, the Prime Minister urged the regions to allocate KZT 200 mln for capitalization of own socio-entrepreneurial corporations (SEC). "Every region should allocate KZT 200 mln from its budget for capitalization of own socio-entrepreneurial corporations," Massimov said. The Head of the Government charged also the Ministry of Agriculture and KazAgro to raise money to lend socio-entrepreneurial corporations. Capitalization of socio-entrepreneurial corporations is necessary within a set of measures on stabilization of prices for basic food commodities
Minister of Science and Education Bakhytzhan Zhumagulov reported on measures for development of pedagogical skilled workers training and upgrading system. The Ministry jointly with the "Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools" JSC studied the practice of states with high training and skills upgrading level. Success in the sphere of education first of all depends on the quality of teaching personnel. It means, the quality of school system is based on skill level of teachers. As a result, we have developed a concept for advancing art of teaching of school teachers. It will be co-realized along with the international organizations.
As stated there, the level of training of graduates of colleges of education of Kazakhstan not to the full meets the country's economic development and needs of Kazakhstan's school.
The Ministry proposes a package of measures for drastic change of the situation.
On Tuesday deputy director of the investment policy department of the Economic Development and Trade Ministry of Kazakhstan Arman Abenov told about successful realization of the "Business Roadmap 2020" developed by the instruction of the Head of State. 376 projects worth KZT 154.9 bln were approved so far.
The Ministry of Information and Communications takes severe measures to improve the work of the public service centers.
At the meeting of the Security Council of Kazakhstan held on Wed the Head of State defined strategic areas of enhancing the country's information security. The session focused on information security and development of the country's penitentiary system.
Nursultan Nazarbayev noted that development and all-round implementation of information-communication technologies makes a huge contribution and gives positive opportunities for the society and state.
The country actively implements e-services, "e-government" portal, broadband internet, latest generation of communications, digital and satellite television.
Alongside, the country should not exclude that these resources can be used for criminal and other purposes, incompatible with public safety; therefore the state must develop appropriate measures of responding to them.
President's Aide-Secretary of the Security Council Marat Tazhin made a report on regulatory, institutional, scientific, resource and other aspects of ensuring information security in the society and the state.
The meeting participants were also presented the reports of the heads of state bodies on fulfillment of the Presidential instructions concerning this problem.
The participants discussed also the urgent issues of ensuring competitiveness of the domestic information space, implementation of digital and satellite television, reliable functioning of the "e-government" portal and its services to the population, effective protection of information systems and resources.
Besides, the participants gave assessment to the existing state mechanisms of ensuring security in information sector and considered potential risks and threats.
In his speech the Head of State defined the strategic directions of ensuring the country's information security having drawn the participants' attention to the current problems and suggested the ways of their resolution at the national level.
Following the discussion the Government was given a number of instructions, namely to inspect the state of information security mechanisms, to ensure stable functioning of the state and corporate information systems and to analyze the practice of struggle against cybercrimes.
Taking into account high research intensity of the information sector, the state bodies were tasked to develop scientific-research activity and train personnel in information security.
While discussing the development of Kazakhstan's correctional system, the President pointed out several achievements in this sphere.
Thus, humanization of the laws allowed reducing the number of persons sentenced to imprisonment. As is known, Kazakhstan plans to announce amnesty dedicated to the 20th anniversary of its independence.
Along with this, over a long period the number of prisoners in Kazakhstan has remained high, whereas the penitentiary system has not undergone serious reforming yet. In this view the state must develop appropriate response measures.
Minister of Justice Rashid Tussupbekov presented a report on the main directions of development of the country's penitentiary system.
Issues regarding reduction of "prison population", improvement of conditions for serving punishment, ensuring the rights of prisoners and their employment, medical care and modernization of the system of security in prisons were discussed.
According to the President, the major directions of further development of the penitentiary system must be use of alternatives to imprisonment, minimizing the number of conditions of serving sentence and bringing the prisons into compliance with the world recognized standards.
Following the meeting the Government was entrusted with several tasks on further humanization of the criminal legislation, establishment of a probation agency, changing the modes of keeping in penitentiary facilities as well as on financing the activities aimed at improvement of the conditions of serving the sentence.
The Secretariat of the Security Council was charged to take the fulfillment of the abovementioned instructions under control.
"Kazakhstan plans this year to complete construction of new energy facilities," Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Industry and New Technologies of Kazakhstan Asset Issekeshev told on Friday addressing the CIS Electric Energy Council.
According to him, one of the projects is construction of gas-turbine power plant on Akshabulak deposit with the capacity of 87 megawatt. Another project is construction of 300 MW Moinak HPP. 13 projects to the amount of KZT 753.2 bln are being realized now under the forced industrial and innovation development programme. Two of them have been already completed. Under the investment agreements concluded for 2009-2015 it is expected to invest above KZT 7 bln (KZT 1 trillion 140 billion).