The Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Olzhas Bektenov, has said at a government meeting where issues of water supply services to urban and rural settlements were addressed that the entire population will have access to clean drinking water within eighteen months.
At the end of last year, access to water supply services in Kazakhstan’s cities amounted to 98.9%, and in rural settlements, 96.6%. Full coverage of the urban population has been achieved in nine regions, with the lowest level of provision noted in the Abai and Pavlodar regions. To improve the situation in the regions with low indicators, funds are being allocated on a priority basis.
Twenty-nine projects to construct and reconstruct pipelines in nine oblasts are being implemented, with plans to reconstruct and develop 2,000 kilometers of water pipelines, providing water supply to 437 settlements. A connection to a centralized water supply will be made in 44 of these, with a total population of 92,000 people. Five projects are under development and will be implemented after receiving state expertise; their implementation will improve the water supply in 200 settlements.
In 2024, 218 billion tenge was bookmarked from the republican budget to fund the construction and reconstruction of water supply and sewage systems.
The Prime Minister emphasized that by the end of 2025, 100% of the population must have access to quality drinking water. “This is one of the most socially important tasks. Only one-and-a-half-years are left for its fulfillment. Despite the high percentage of fulfillment, akimats (local authorities) should intensify work to achieve the plans to bring the relevant infrastructure to villages and towns. All works on the water supply should be prioritized. The implementation of water supply networks within settlements should be synchronized with the plans to bring the infrastructure of group water conduits to the borders of villages”, said Bektenov.
