• KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01144 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00188 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09149 -0.33%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28490 -0.42%
20 January 2025

Viewing results 7 - 12 of 394

Kyrgyzstan Launches Sustainable Tourism Development Program

The Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan has approved a new Program for Sustainable Tourism Development which is set to run until 2030. The program aims to significantly enhance the country's tourism sector, focusing on sustainable growth, regional development, and environmental preservation. Program Priorities The program outlines several key areas for development: Strengthening state policy, improving regulations, and enhancing strategic management in tourism. Boosting the attractiveness of tourism services for both domestic and international travelers. Leveraging digital technologies to simplify access to tourism products. Ensuring the safety and security of tourists. Preserving and promoting Kyrgyzstan’s historical, cultural, and natural heritage while maintaining ecological balance. Stimulating regional development and supporting local economies through tourism initiatives. Improving transport, hotel, and tourism infrastructure. Encouraging the adoption of green technologies and supporting environmentally friendly practices. Promoting niche tourism markets such as medical, sports, and health resort tourism. The program has ambitious goals, including increasing tourism's contribution to the national GDP to 7% and achieving a 10% annual growth in the number of domestic and foreign tourists. Currently, tourism accounts for 2.7% of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP. Rising Tourism Numbers Kyrgyzstan’s tourism industry has seen steady growth in recent years. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, the country is expected to have attracted more than 10.5 million foreign tourists in 2024, up from 8.5 million in 2023. In the first eight months of 2024 alone, Kyrgyzstan welcomed 6.1 million foreign visitors. The majority of tourists came from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Russia, followed by travelers from Turkey, China, India, Germany, Pakistan, the United States, and South Korea. Infrastructure and Investment On January 11, the First Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Daniyar Amangeldiev, chaired a meeting on tourism development. The discussions centered on improving tourism infrastructure, creating favorable conditions for investment in the sector, and designing new tourist routes. Amangeldiev emphasized the pivotal role of tourism in driving economic growth and creating jobs. As part of the government's plans, 40 new tourist bases are expected to open across the country by 2025. These will be developed in cooperation with local communities and investors. “We must improve services, develop unique routes, and ensure tourists’ safety throughout their journey in Kyrgyzstan,” Amangeldiev stated. A Vision for the Future With its diverse landscapes, rich cultural heritage, and growing global recognition, Kyrgyzstan is positioning itself as a major tourism destination in Central Asia. The new program aims to transform the sector into a key driver of sustainable development, while preserving the country’s natural and cultural treasures for future generations.

NASA Discovers ‘Ghost’ Island in the Caspian Sea

NASA satellites have detected a fascinating phenomenon in the Caspian Sea: the temporary formation of an island following the eruption of the Kumani mud volcano. According to data from NASA's Earth Observatory, the island emerged in early 2023 but had almost completely disappeared by the end of 2024, earning it the nickname “ghost island.” The island was first observed using Landsat 8 and 9 satellite imagery in January 2023, shortly after the volcano erupted. It measured up to 400 meters wide and was accompanied by a visible sedimentary plume extending from its surface. However, by late 2024, the island had diminished significantly, leaving only faint traces of its existence. The Kumani mud volcano, located 25 kilometers off the eastern coast of Azerbaijan, is no stranger to such occurrences. Since its first recorded eruption in 1861, the volcano has periodically created temporary islands, which vanish after short periods. Mud volcanoes like Kumani are common in regions with active tectonic activity. They eject high-pressure mixtures of water, gas, and sediment, forming landmasses that are often unstable and short-lived. The Caspian region is notable for its high concentration of mud volcanoes, with more than 300 such formations in Azerbaijan and on the Caspian Sea shelf. Many of these volcanoes emit combustible gases, particularly methane, which has drawn the interest of scientists and geologists. The connection between these mud volcanoes and the hydrocarbon systems of the South Caspian Basin makes them critical subjects for research. The emergence and disappearance of this “ghost” island in the Caspian Sea highlight how much remains to be understood about mud volcanoes. These transient landforms demonstrate the dynamic forces of nature and underscore the need for further exploration of geological processes occurring on the seafloor.

In Doha, Central Asian Artists Dismantle Orientalism

Completely covered by a huge textile patchwork piece, softly moved by the wind, the façade of the Mathaf Museum in Doha promises visitors something fascinating and alluring. Coming closer, attendees could read a series of statements in various languages on the fabric. The effect of familiarity and estrangement at once was the purpose of Azerbaijani artist Babi Badalov, who realized the piece. By layering phrases in Arabic, Cyrillic, and Latin with calligraffiti and employing disjointed grammar and syntax, the artist meant to visually disrupt “linguistic imperialism” and show how Europe’s modern civilization owes much to Arab civilization. [caption id="attachment_27513" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] The Mathaf Museum in Doha; image: TCA, Naima Morelli[/caption] This specially commissioned work, called Text Still (2024), is nothing but an appetizer for the show Seeing is Believing: The Art and Influence of Gérôme. Organized by the forthcoming Lusail Museum — an institution under development in northern Doha that will house the largest collection of the so-called Orientalist art — the exhibition features loans from institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Islamic Arts Museum in Malaysia. The main part of the show is dedicated to French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme, who lived and worked in the 19th century and was profoundly influential in his depictions of the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. His works shaped Western perceptions of these regions during an era when colonialism and “Oriental Studies” were cementing global power dynamics. The show included a historical and biographical exploration of Gérôme’s life, timed to celebrate the 200th anniversary of his birth, as well as a photographic section curated by Giles Hudson dedicated to visions of the Orient from Gérôme’s time to today. But it is in the third section, centered on contemporary art and called “I Swear I saw That”, that Central Asian artist really enter into a close dialogue with Gérôme’s Orientalism, turning it on its head. Sara Raza, curator of this section, takes Badalov’s textile work as a case in point: “Badalov inverts Edward Said’s mission of examining Western perceptions of the Orient, focusing instead on Eastern perceptions of the Occident, and vice versa,” she told The Times of Central Asia. Edward Said’s concept of Orientalism, as detailed in his groundbreaking 1978 work of the same name, is an institutionalized program of Western knowledge, based mostly on projections, mystification, and imagination - and includes works of art as well as the academy - which is directed to justify a supposed Western superiority and imperialism over Eastern populations. “I Swear I Saw That” interrogates Jean-Leon Gerome’s way of seeing, which Sara Raza recognizes as a “fantastical and highly mythologized vision of the East,” and looks at how artists from both the Middle East, the Arab world and Central Asia fought back. A Central Asia and Caucasus expert who works extensively in the Middle East, Raza has examined the process of the exoticization of Eastern populations for a long time. She coined the term “Punk Orientalism,” which also became the...

Uzbek Footballer Abdukodir Khusanov to Sign for Manchester City

When the English champions Manchester City suffered a shock run of losses recently, soccer fans began guessing what moves coach Pep Guardiola would make to stop their winter slump. No-one expected him to call for a defender from Uzbekistan. Abdukodir Khusanov, still only 20 but already with 18 appearances for the White Wolves, is set to become Guardiola’s first signing of 2025. On 11 January the tall center-back agreed to join City in a €40 million ($41 million) transfer from the French team RC Lens. Once the move is complete, Khusanov is expected to sign a contract for four and a half years, Manchester City have won five of the last six Premier League titles. They were European club champions in 2023 after winning a first UEFA Champions League. With Europe's giants very rarely looking to Asia for their next young star, Khusanov has taken an unconventional route to the Etihad Stadium. He began his career in the youth team of local side Bunyodkor, before moving to Belarus in 2022, at the age of 18, to play for Energetik-BGU Minsk. In 2023 Khusanov was part of the Uzbekistan youth team that won the AFC Under-20 Asian Cup. There his confident passing and physicality caught the attention of RC Lens. He became a fan favorite in northern France, and the youngest Uzbek to play in the Champions League. Conor Bowers, a British fan of Uzbek soccer, has followed Khusanov’s career closely, and mentions that the €40 million man once struggled even to make teams in his homeland. “Although he is now over six feet tall, his youth coaches thought he would be too small to make it professionally. And that was even as a child, when he played as a striker.” Of his season in France, Bowers adds: “People had high hopes for Khusanov, but no-one expected him to move to a club the size of Manchester City this fast. People feel it will put Uzbekistan in the spotlight of the football world.” It was his strong performances in the French league that put Khusanov on the radar of Europe’s best clubs – Manchester City beat other English teams to his signature – but the defender is also vital to his national team. With the striker Eldor Shomurodov (of Roma in Italy) leading the attack, and Khusanov the team’s rock in defense, Uzbekistan has become Central Asia’s most accomplished side. The senior team is on course to qualify for next year’s men’s FIFA World Cup in North America. Khusanov will be the first footballer from anywhere in Central Asia to play in the English Premier League. However, he is not the first player born in Tashkent to grace the so-called “best league in the world". The Nigerian forward Peter Odemwingie spent his early childhood in Uzbekistan’s capital, before playing in the EPL for West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City. As news of Khusanov’s move to Manchester swept across Uzbek media over the weekend, sports fans were excited by the prospect of...

Uzbekistan Receives Historic Manuscript Copies from Malaysia

Uzbekistan’s cultural heritage will soon be added to with facsimile copies of ancient manuscripts provided by Malaysia. This initiative is part of a collaboration between the Center for Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan and Malaysia’s International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization. During a recent visit to Malaysia by an Uzbek delegation, the Center’s Director, Firdavs Abdukhalikov, received copies of two invaluable works: Abu Rayhan Beruni's At-Tafhim and Abulkasim Firdavsi's Shahnameh, both transcribed during the Timurid era. Abdukhalikov believes this initiative aligns with broader efforts to promote humanitarian values and preserve Uzbekistan’s historical heritage. “The copies of manuscripts received today will further enrich the exposition of our center,” he stated. Beruni’s At-Tafhim, originally transcribed in 1197, holds immense significance for world science. Meanwhile, the Timurid-era transcription of Firdavsi’s Shahnameh, produced in the 15th century, reflects the traditions of book printing from that period and showcases the distinctive features of Kamoliddin Behzod’s renowned school of miniature painting. These manuscripts will be displayed at the Center for Islamic Civilization, which was established eight years ago to celebrate the contributions of Uzbek scholars to global civilization and to preserve the nation’s rich cultural legacy.

Condé Nast Traveler Names Kyrgyzstan’s Karakol Among 25 Best Places to Visit in 2025

Condé Nast Traveler has crowned the Kyrgyz town of Karakol as the "adventure capital of Central Asia" and included it in its prestigious list of the 25 best places to visit in 2025​. Located southeast of Lake Issyk-Kul, and approximately 150km from the Kyrgyzstan-China border, Karakol is Kyrgyzstan’s premier winter tourism hub. The city boasts the nation’s largest and best mountain ski resort. The magazine highlights Karakol as a prime destination for outdoor enthusiasts, offering activities such as hiking, horseback riding, kayaking, and paragliding. It also praises the Karakol ski base, the highest ski resort in Central Asia, perched at an altitude of 1.8 miles. Looking ahead, Karakol is set to further solidify its reputation as a winter sports haven. A new resort, Three Peaks, is scheduled to open in 2026 in collaboration with French ski specialists Société des Trois-Vallées. This development is expected to attract even more winter sports enthusiasts to the region. Beyond adventure, Condé Nast Traveler lauds Karakol’s cultural and culinary diversity. The city is home to a mix of Uyghur, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Kalmak, Dungan, and Russian communities. This multicultural heritage has given rise to unique attractions, including wooden "gingerbread" houses, cold ashlan-fu soup, and the Dungan Mosque, built in 1907 by Chinese artisans. The mosque reflects Buddhist influences, with a pagoda replacing the traditional minaret. Condé Nast Traveler suggests visiting Karakol between June and September for trekking and cultural tours, while December through April is ideal for winter sports enthusiasts. The city has become more accessible with the reopening of its reconstructed international airport in December 2024. This development allows travelers to reach Karakol from Bishkek in under an hour by plane. Alternatively, the journey takes 6-7 hours by car or bus​​.