Kazakhstan has become the first country in Central Asia and one of only ten in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) European Region to meet the target of reducing premature mortality from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) by 25% by 2025, according to the Ministry of Health.
The data is based on the WHO Regional Office for Europe’s latest report, Preventable Mortality, Risk Factors and Strategies for Responding to NCDs. The ten countries recognized for achieving this milestone are Belgium, Denmark, Israel, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, and Estonia.
“These countries have implemented the most effective WHO strategies, reduced risk factor prevalence, and strengthened healthcare systems, resulting in a consistent annual decline in deaths from preventable and treatable NCDs, particularly cardiovascular diseases and cancer,” the report states. Kazakhstan’s efforts in these two areas were specifically highlighted.
Kazakhstan’s progress has focused on prevention, early diagnosis, expanded treatment access, and improved survival outcomes. WHO monitoring shows the country has implemented 50% of recommended NCD control measures and conducted its first national STEPS survey, a WHO-endorsed standard for assessing NCD risk factors, significantly bolstering public health capabilities.
In response to the high burden of cardiovascular disease, Kazakhstan has increased the number of catheterization laboratories from 31 to 49 between 2017 and 2024, and opened 83 stroke centers, substantially reducing stroke-related mortality and disability rates.
The country has also made significant progress in high-tech medical interventions. Since 2012, more than 600 ventricular assist devices have been implanted, and in 2025, Kazakhstan performed its 100th heart transplant. In 2024, it became the first country in the CIS and Central Asia to introduce a new technology for treating cardiac arrhythmias.
The state health program also includes screenings for eight major diseases, including hypertension, ischemic heart disease, diabetes, and various cancers. By the end of 2024, 70% of the targeted population had been screened for breast and colorectal cancer.
As a result of these initiatives, life expectancy in Kazakhstan rose from 74.44 years in 2022 to 75.09 years in 2023.
Kazakhstan has also aggressively addressed behavioral risk factors. It enforces some of the region’s strictest anti-smoking laws, including public smoking bans, graphic warnings, tobacco taxes, advertising restrictions, and a complete ban on electronic cigarettes and vapes. Over the past decade, smoking rates have declined by 20%.
To reduce sugar consumption, the government banned the sale of sweetened beverages in schools and, in 2024, passed legislation prohibiting energy drink sales to individuals under 21.
As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Kazakhstan plans to fund health insurance for over one million unemployed citizens starting in 2026.
