Kyrgyzstan Life & Culture - The Times Of Central Asia

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World Nomad Games

World Nomad Games Return Home as Kyrgyzstan Welcomes World Leaders

Few periods since independence have put Kyrgyzstan so squarely in the international spotlight. On August 31, the country marked 35 years of independence, opened the sixth World Nomad Games, and prepared to host a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit that has brought more than a dozen foreign leaders to Bishkek. The Games themselves were back where they began. Kyrgyzstan launched the World Nomad Games in 2014 and staged the first three editions at Cholpon Ata before the event moved to Turkey in 2022 and Kazakhstan in 2024. This year's Games run through September 6, with The Times of Central Asia reporting from Bishkek and Issyk-Kul throughout the week in our special coverage. The opening took place at the new Bishkek Arena, rising out of the dust on the southwestern edge of the capital near the foothills of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too Range. Around 30,000 spectators attended the ceremony. The stadium will eventually hold more than 51,000, but it is not formally due to open until October 5. The Games opened while work on the arena was still underway, with parts of the building still looking unfinished. In the weeks before the ceremony, horses had circled the arena floor during rehearsals while drilling continued around them. By the time the spectators arrived, the construction site had become the biggest show in town. Before the politics and pageantry, there was pop. Kyrgyzstan put many of its best-known performers on stage in a concert that at times had a distinctly Eurovision feel. Energetic hosts introduced a succession of singers and rappers while tightly choreographed dancers moved between traditional dress and contemporary styling. The lineup included Bayastan, Malika Dina, Erlan Andashev, Begish, and others, but veteran singer Baktiyar Toktorov received the loudest reaction. When he launched into "Yza," known almost universally by its "Bui-Bui" refrain, spectators rose from their seats and sang with him. Even some of the security guards joined in. The refrain does not demand many words, but almost everybody in the arena seemed to know them. The new stadium also showed some early teething problems, with concession stands running out of bottled water and food as crowds built. After the concert, the momentum disappeared. The audience waited for around 90 minutes while footage of arriving dignitaries played on the giant screens. The reason for the pause soon became clear, as one motorcade after another delivered guests for the formal ceremony. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko were among those in the stands. The presidents of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan also attended, along with leaders and senior officials from elsewhere in Asia, the Caucasus, and Africa. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was among the international guests. One expected heavyweight was missing. Chinese President Xi Jinping, in Bishkek for a state visit and the SCO summit, had been due to attend the opening. Presidential spokesman Askat Alagozov said Xi had stayed away because of the deadly flooding and landslides in...

Podcast

Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode Out Now

As Managing Editor of The Times of Central Asia, I’m delighted that, in partnership with the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, we are the home of the Spotlight on Central Asia podcast. Chaired by seasoned broadcasters Bruce Pannier of RFE/RL’s long-running Majlis podcast and Michael Hillard of The Red Line, each fortnightly instalment will take you on a deep dive into the latest news, developments, security issues, and social trends across an increasingly pivotal region. This week, the team is covering the Kurultai elections and what they mean for Kazakhstan. Special guest: Central Asia journalist Paul Bartlett.

World Nomad Games

Kok Boru and the Art of Being Noticed: The World Nomad Games as Kyrgyzstan’s Calling Card

A stampede throws up a great wall of dust as a scrum of white, sweating stallions tears past. A roar rises from the stands. With horsemen in hot pursuit, a rider bursts from the pack, swinging a 30-kilo plastic simulation of a goat carcass. As they charge toward the goal, the horses bare their teeth. This is the spectacle awaiting travelers from far and wide at this year’s World Nomad Games. For Kyrgyzstan, the Games are a source of pride. Born beside Lake Issyk-Kul, twelve years on, the sixth edition will see 100,000 visitors descend on a town of 13,000. The timing in 2026 makes the aspiration hard to ignore. The opening ceremony falls on Kyrgyzstan’s Independence Day, while leaders are also gathering in Bishkek for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. Presidential spokesman Askat Alagozov has said 21 heads of state are expected. The Games will open before many of them in the new 51,000-seat Bishkek Arena. [caption id="attachment_54493" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Image: International Secretariat of the World Nomad Games[/caption] Kyrgyzstan has spent more than a decade building toward this goal. The initiative was approved at the Turkic Council summit in Bishkek in 2012 before the first Games were staged in Cholpon Ata in 2014. Then, there were 583 athletes from 19 countries. Kyrgyzstan hosted again in 2016 and 2018, before the event moved to Turkey in 2022 and Kazakhstan in 2024. That decision could have diluted Kyrgyzstan’s ownership. Instead, each foreign edition strengthened the identity of the event Kyrgyzstan had started. In December 2025, founder Askhat Akibaev transferred the intellectual property rights to the Kyrgyz state. Cabinet Chairman Adylbek Kasymaliev called the Games “the flagship of our state’s cultural diplomacy.” Akibaev explained the achievement succinctly after the first three editions. “We proved to ourselves and the world that a small country can do something global,” he told RFE/RL. Kyrgyzstan cannot match major powers through stadium budgets or international sports leagues, but the Games have given it access to an audience money alone could not buy. The cultural case has also gained international recognition. In 2021, UNESCO selected “Nomad games, rediscovering heritage, celebrating diversity” for its Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. The program was praised for reviving traditional games and passing knowledge to younger generations, while bonding contestants across borders. [caption id="attachment_54490" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Image: International Secretariat of the World Nomad Games[/caption] The numbers tell their own story. Astana brought together 2,500 athletes from 89 countries in 2024. This year, around 3,000 athletes are registered from 113 countries for 43 sports. Local organizers say the field now reaches far beyond states with a direct nomadic heritage, with newcomers expected from New Zealand and several African countries. Team GB offers one of the clearest examples. Britain competed in Astana in 2024, and is returning with a larger contingent. The team has expanded beyond tug-of-war and intellectual games into horseback archery and wrestling. The sole British competitor in the Alysh wrestling will be The Times of Central Asia contributor, Jonathan Campion. The British...

Kyrgyz Film

Kyrgyz Film Opens Central Asian Cultural Series in Argentina

A screening of the Kyrgyz historical drama Kurmanjan Datka: Queen of the Mountains in Buenos Aires on August 7 has opened a new series aimed at introducing Central Asian cinema and literature to audiences in Latin America. The event was organized by the Eurasian Creative Guild with support from the Yunus Emre Institute in Buenos Aires. The organizers told The Times of Central Asia that the screening was the first official presentation of a Kyrgyz feature film in Argentina. The event also launched an international series of Central Asian film screenings and book presentations in Argentina and elsewhere in Latin America. Directed by Sadyk Sher-Niyaz, Kurmanjan Datka: Queen of the Mountains tells the story of the 19th-century Kyrgyz leader Kurmanjan Datka. The film was Kyrgyzstan’s submission for the Foreign Language Film category at the 87th Academy Awards. The Buenos Aires event also included a presentation of the English-language book Queen Kurmanjan of the Mountains by Kyrgyz author Bubaysha Arstanbekova, published by Hertfordshire Press. The series is being organized in the run-up to the 15th Open Eurasian Literary Festival & Book Forum, which is scheduled to take place in Buenos Aires in October 2027. Kazakhstan will be the focus of the next screening in September, with the historical drama The Crying Steppe, directed by Marina Kunarova. The film, set against the Soviet-era famine in Kazakhstan, was Kazakhstan’s submission for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards. The organizers said further film screenings and literary presentations are planned as part of efforts to expand cultural links between Central Asia and Latin America.

Film Festival

How Kyrgyzstan Used the SCO Film Festival to Raise Its International Profile

Kyrgyzstan hosted the first International Film Festival of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states from July 16 to 19, marking the country’s largest international cinema event to date. Held at the Rukh Ordo cultural center in Cholpon-Ata to coincide with the SCO’s 25th anniversary, the festival brought together delegations from Kyrgyzstan, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Iran, and Belarus. Each country presented one feature film, while an international jury chaired by Kyrgyz writer and director Ernest Abdyzhaparov selected the winners. The Grand Prix went to the Kyrgyz film Kara Kyzyl Sary (“Black, Red, Yellow”), giving the host nation a symbolic victory at the festival’s inaugural edition. Other awards went to Russia’s Angels of Ladoga for cinematography, Kazakhstan’s Autumn Breeze for screenplay, and Chinese director Lan Hongchun for Dear You. Acting honors were shared by performers from the Tajik-Iranian co-production Fish on the Hook and the Iranian film The Player. The festival also functioned as a forum for the region’s film industry. Discussions covered co-production and financing, along with the possibility of creating a common SCO film market. A proposal to establish a dedicated co-production fund drew particular attention. Such a fund could support joint productions rather than limiting cooperation to cultural exchanges. Participants also discussed training for young filmmakers and closer ties between film schools. Joint workshops were another area of interest. For Kyrgyz cinema, access to larger production markets could open new sources of financing and support the transfer of technical expertise. It could also help domestic films reach international audiences. Iranian jury member Ruhollah Hosseini expressed hope for peace in his country before presenting an award, giving the ceremony a more personal note. Hosting the festival was also significant for Kyrgyzstan. As the country chairs the SCO, Issyk-Kul has become one of the organization’s main venues. The festival added a cultural dimension to that role and brought officials and filmmakers from across the SCO to Kyrgyzstan. The event could also bring longer-term benefits to the Issyk-Kul Region. Visiting filmmakers were able to see the area’s mountain scenery and historic locations. They also viewed local facilities that could support future productions, potentially increasing interest in Issyk-Kul as a filming destination. Whether the festival becomes more than a one-off event will depend on the implementation of the initiatives announced in Cholpon-Ata. If the proposed co-production fund is established and the professional contacts formed during the festival develop into joint projects, the first SCO Film Festival could mark the beginning of a more integrated regional film industry rather than simply another entry on the cultural calendar. Earlier this year, The Times of Central Asia reported that the Bishkek International Film Festival had grown into one of Central Asia’s leading film industry platforms, attracting participants from more than 30 countries.

Tourism

Japarov Says Tourist Flow to Kyrgyzstan Has Reached 13 Million as Central Asia’s Travel Boom Accelerates

President Sadyr Japarov says the number of tourists visiting Kyrgyzstan has reached 13 million, although his July 21 statement did not specify the reporting period or methodology behind the figure. For a country of roughly seven million people, the reported total is nearly twice the size of its population. Kyrgyzstan’s official tourism statistics count border crossings rather than unique visitors, meaning the same traveler may be counted more than once. Japarov said the total had risen from 2-3 million annual visitors before 2020-2021. However, official tourism datasets have used different measures over time, so the comparison should be treated cautiously. Kyrgyzstan has steadily strengthened its position in Central Asia’s tourism market by promoting mountain destinations, ecotourism, trekking routes, and cultural heritage. Official expectations for visitor numbers have risen almost every year alongside continued investment in the sector. According to State Agency for Tourism Development head Eduard Kubatov, about 10 million tourists visited the country in 2025, contributing more than $1 billion to the economy. Earlier this summer, the agency forecast around 12 million tourist arrivals for 2026. Kubatov said tourism accounts for more than 5% of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP and that the government aims to increase its contribution to 7.5%. The National Statistical Committee separately estimated tourism’s gross value added at 3.8% of GDP in 2024. Another factor expected to support the sector is the removal of all air carriers certified in Kyrgyzstan from the European Union’s Air Safety List, opening the possibility of direct air services between the country and EU member states. Kyrgyzstan’s latest figures come amid a broader tourism boom across Central Asia, although comparisons between countries require caution because governments use different statistical methodologies. Some count all foreign arrivals, while others distinguish between overnight tourists, same-day visitors, and other categories of travelers. Kazakhstan reported 15.7 million foreign arrivals in 2025, excluding people entering for employment or permanent residence. Official data indicates that 11.1 million qualified as tourists, while accommodation statistics show that about 1.4 million foreign visitors used registered accommodation, suggesting many stayed with relatives, friends, or in private rentals. Uzbekistan also reported strong growth. During the first half of 2026, the country recorded 6.56 million tourist arrivals, nearly one-quarter more than during the same period a year earlier. For comparison, Uzbekistan recorded about 8 million tourist trips by foreign citizens throughout 2024. One notable feature of regional tourism is the intensity of cross-border travel within Central Asia. Kyrgyz citizens formed the largest group of foreign visitors to Uzbekistan during the first half of 2026, illustrating how neighboring countries increasingly generate tourism demand for one another. The latest figures reinforce the growing importance of tourism for Kyrgyzstan’s economy. Whether the reported arrival numbers translate into higher export revenues, longer visitor stays, and greater private investment will depend less on the volume of border crossings than on visitor spending, infrastructure development, and the industry’s ability to create sustainable economic value. For now, the available data suggest that tourism is becoming increasingly important in Kyrgyzstan and across Central Asia,...