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Kyrgyzstan Public Debt Exceeds $10 Billion as Repayment Costs Rise

Kyrgyzstan’s public debt reached $10.16 billion by the end of July 2026, with the government expecting to spend about $1.83 billion servicing its external debt between 2027 and 2029. According to Ministry of Finance figures, external debt stood at $5.19 billion as of July 31, while domestic debt totaled $4.96 billion. External borrowing consists mainly of loans from foreign governments and international financial institutions, while domestic debt is raised primarily through government bonds. Total debt was equivalent to about 38% of the government’s projected gross domestic product (GDP) for 2026. At the end of 2025, the debt-to-GDP ratio stood at 39.5%, up from 36.2% a year earlier. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the ratio to reach 41.4% by the end of 2026. The country’s debt burden is relatively high compared with those of its Central Asian neighbors. IMF figures put Kazakhstan’s public debt at 25.2% of GDP in 2025, while the equivalent figures were 28.6% for Uzbekistan and a projected 24.7% for Tajikistan. For comparison, United States government debt stood at 123.9% of GDP in 2025. China remains Kyrgyzstan’s largest foreign creditor. According to Deputy Finance Minister Umutjan Amanbaev, Bishkek owes Beijing about $1.4 billion, equivalent to 27% of its external debt. Much of the remainder is owed to international development banks and financial institutions. Most external loans were obtained on concessional terms, generally carrying low interest rates and long repayment periods. However, the country has also begun taking on more expensive commercial debt. In May 2025, the government issued its first sovereign Eurobonds, raising $700 million through five-year notes carrying an annual interest rate of 7.75%. The bonds, placed on the London Stock Exchange, now account for about 13.5% of external debt. They are due to mature in 2030, when external debt repayments are projected to reach about $1.1 billion, based on the repayment schedule for existing obligations. The draft budget for 2027–2029, published by the Ministry of Finance, allocates about $606 million to external debt servicing in 2027, $600 million in 2028, and $621 million in 2029. These payments cover principal and interest on existing debt. More than 80% are denominated in U.S. dollars, so a weaker som could increase the budget cost of meeting the same obligations. The government also expects to spend 82.2 billion soms servicing domestic debt. Public debt remains below the government’s benchmark of 70% of GDP. The Ministry of Finance expects debt sustainability to be maintained over the medium term, although exchange-rate fluctuations and economic shocks remain significant risks. The IMF also considers the debt sustainable, while assessing its risk of debt distress as moderate. However, it has warned that growing repayment costs, particularly on domestic and non-concessional borrowing, could place increasing pressure on public finances.

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Kazakhstan Signs Declaration on Human Oversight of AI at Work

Kazakhstan's government, employers, and trade unions signed a declaration on October 7 calling for human oversight of artificial intelligence in the workplace. The declaration was adopted in Astana at the international forum “Digital Labor and Artificial Intelligence.” It states that decisions affecting workers’ rights and interests should involve a human decision-maker rather than be left entirely to AI. Federation of Trade Unions chairman Satybaldy Dauletalin said employers should remain accountable for decisions made using algorithms. Workers should be able to challenge those decisions and request human review, he said. The federation said the signatories agreed to establish a national forum for cooperation on digital labor and AI. Working groups and a monitoring system would support implementation. Some protections already exist under Kazakh law. The country's AI legislation, which took effect in January 2026, establishes requirements for transparency and human autonomy in AI systems. The Digital Code, effective since July, also gives people the right, under certain conditions, to seek explanations of fully automated decisions and request human review when those decisions affect their rights. The European Union's 2024 Platform Work Directive sets specific requirements for algorithmic management on digital labor platforms. It requires human oversight of automated systems, including human decisions on the dismissal or suspension of workers. Member states have until December 2026 to implement the directive. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan is already using AI in its public employment services. In the Mangystau and Pavlodar regions, an automated job-matching system sent approximately 59,000 personalized vacancy notifications over two months. Deputy Labor Minister Bakhtiyar Zhazykpayev said about 3,000 people had found employment. Those figures alone do not establish how many found work directly because of the system. The federation’s published account does not explain whether the declaration creates additional enforceable obligations for employers or a new complaints procedure for workers.

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Kazakhstan Names Former Finance Official Deputy Defense Minister Amid Military Shake-Up

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev appointed Tatyana Savelyeva deputy defense minister on October 7. The former vice minister of finance and member of parliament joins a ministry undergoing a major investigation following the deaths of 14 service members during exercises in the Caspian Sea. The investigation has led to criminal cases and arrests, while senior military commanders have been dismissed. Savelyeva replaced Asker Beisenov, who was dismissed from his position on the same day. To take up the appointment, she resigned early from the Kurultai, Kazakhstan's new unicameral parliament. Savelyeva joined it in late August 2026. The 50-year-old Savelyeva has spent most of her career working in public finance. From 2016 to 2023, she served as vice minister of finance, then became a member of the Mazhilis, the lower house of the former parliament, and secretary of the Committee on Finance and Budget. She became the committee’s chair in February 2024. In August 2026, she was elected to the Kurultai representing the Adilet party. The Defense Ministry has not yet announced which areas Savelyeva will oversee. Her predecessor, Beisenov, previously headed the ministry's Department of Economics and Finance. Political analyst Daniyar Ashimbayev links Savelyeva's appointment to the investigation into the Defense Ministry following the deaths of the service members in the Caspian Sea. He recalled corruption investigations within the ministry, including irregularities in military procurement and supplies. In Ashimbayev's assessment, Savelyeva's experience in the Finance Ministry and parliament could prove useful in bringing order to the military budget. On September 24, during the Khazar Qorgany 2026 naval exercises in the Mangystau region, on Kazakhstan's Caspian coast, 17 service members were swept out to sea. Three were rescued, and 14 died. The tragedy sparked public outrage and questions about how the exercises were organized, personnel training, and the actions of the military command. On September 27, Tokayev dismissed Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov. Aidos Myrzakhmetov became the new head of the ministry. The chief of the General Staff, the commander-in-chief of the Naval Forces, and other senior military officers subsequently lost their positions. On October 5, the president was presented with the initial findings of the Defense Ministry investigation. A commission headed by Deputy Chair of the Security Council Aida Balayeva identified violations in the organization of exercises, service member safety, discipline, and logistical support. Thirteen criminal cases have been opened over the suspected theft of state property, abuse of office, and other violations. The deaths of the service members are being investigated separately. At the October 5 briefing, officials said five military officials had been arrested in connection with the deaths. On October 6, the Interior Ministry announced the detention of former navy commander Kanat Niyazbekov on suspicion of negligence, with a court authorizing his arrest. Investigators also uncovered cases of hazing and violence against service members. Tokayev instructed officials to prepare a military reform plan, including changes to management, personnel training, discipline, and safety measures. On September 27, he gave the Security Council Office and Defense Ministry ten days to submit the...

Justice Uzbekistan Uzbekistan Justice

Most Compensation for Uzbekistan’s Dok-1 Max Victims Remains Unpaid

Families affected by Uzbekistan's Dok-1 Max poisoning scandal are still owed most of the 78 billion soums awarded in compensation, more than two years after the court verdict, according to the Bureau of Compulsory Enforcement. The case dates back to late 2022, when children across Uzbekistan fell ill after taking contaminated cold medicines, including Dok-1 Max, manufactured by the Indian pharmaceutical company Marion Biotech. Laboratory tests confirmed that samples of Dok-1 Max and another syrup, Ambronol, contained dangerous levels of diethylene glycol and/or ethylene glycol, toxic substances that can cause severe kidney damage and death. By February 2024, the medicines had been linked to the deaths of 68 children. On February 26, 2024, a court in Tashkent sentenced 23 defendants in connection with the scandal, including pharmaceutical executives and officials responsible for drug testing and regulation. Sardor Kariyev, a former head of Uzbekistan's pharmaceutical development agency and state drug testing center, received an 18-year prison sentence. Singh Raghvendra Pratap, director of Quramax Medical, the company that imported the medicines into Uzbekistan, was sentenced to 20 years. An investigation by the country's Anti-Corruption Agency identified failures in drug registration, certification, and oversight that had created opportunities for corruption. The issue of unpaid compensation has resurfaced following complaints on social media that payments had stopped. In a statement reported on October 7, the bureau said it was continuing efforts to recover money from Kariyev and other convicted defendants. Enforcement officers seized Kariyev's properties in Tashkent. A nonresidential building on Furqat Street was sold at an electronic auction for 793 million soums (about $67,000). Residential properties in the Chilanzar district, valued at a combined 7.1 billion soums (about $601,000), remain up for auction. According to the bureau, proceeds from the property sale, together with money paid by Kariyev's relatives, have enabled the distribution of 16.7 billion soums ($1.41 million) to the claimants. The recovered funds were divided equally among them. That leaves 61.3 billion soums (about $5.19 million) outstanding. The bureau has given no indication of when the families might receive the remaining compensation.

Justice Kyrgyzstan Justice Home Kyrgyzstan Features Kyrgyzstan Features

Kyrgyzstan Court Jails Kadyr Atambayev and Temirlan Sultanbekov

A court in Kyrgyzstan has sentenced Kadyr Atambayev, the son of former President Almazbek Atambayev, to four years in prison and opposition Social Democrats leader Temirlan Sultanbekov to seven years over an alleged plot to seize power following last year's parliamentary elections. The defendants denied the allegations, and Sultanbekov described the prosecution as politically motivated shortly before the October 8 verdict. The trial at Bishkek’s Pervomaisky District Court was held behind closed doors despite defense lawyers’ requests for public hearings, preventing independent scrutiny of much of the evidence. Kadyr Atambayev entered politics in 2021, when he was elected to Bishkek's city council as a Social Democrats representative. His father served as Kyrgyzstan's president from 2011 to 2017 but fell into conflict with his successor, Sooronbay Jeenbekov, and subsequently faced several criminal prosecutions. Sultanbekov leads the Social Democrats, a party closely associated with the former president's political circle. He is also a vice president of the Socialist International, an international association of socialist and social democratic parties. He was previously convicted in a separate case involving allegations of vote buying during the November 2024 local elections. His new seven-year prison term takes into account the earlier sentence. The latest case began on November 22, 2025, eight days before Kyrgyzstan's early parliamentary elections. Police detained ten people, including Social Democrats members, former lawmakers, and associates of Almazbek Atambayev. Investigators alleged that the group was preparing to organize unrest after the vote. Atambayev and Sultanbekov were among those charged with preparing a forcible seizure of power. Defense lawyers challenged the prosecution's evidence. Lawyer Asel Argymbaeva questioned a recording used in the case, alleging that it was made before investigators obtained judicial authorization for surveillance and that expert examinations found no calls for violence. The court acquitted former lawmaker Kubanychbek Kadyrov, while some other defendants received lesser penalties or were released from custody. Those convicted have the right to appeal. The verdicts come less than four months before Kyrgyzstan's presidential election on January 27, 2027, in which incumbent President Sadyr Japarov intends to seek a second term. Since Japarov came to power in 2020, Kyrgyzstan has adopted a presidential system that concentrates greater authority in the head of state. The presidential election is taking place amid criminal prosecutions of several prominent political figures and restrictions on rallies in central Bishkek.

Life & Culture Kazakhstan Life & Culture

Goethe-Institut Director on Kazakhstan’s Cultural Ties with Germany

What does genuine intercultural dialogue look like in an interconnected yet polarized world? The Times of Central Asia spoke with Friederike van Stephaudt, director and head of cultural programs at the Goethe-Institut in Kazakhstan, about cultural relations between Germany and Kazakhstan. She discussed literary translation and how young people’s interest in studying or working in Germany can develop into lasting cultural connections. TCA: When you came to lead the Goethe-Institut in Kazakhstan, what aspects of the country’s culture and society particularly interested you? Friederike van Stephaudt: What fascinated me from the very beginning was Kazakhstan’s unique position at the intersection of tradition and modernity. The country combines a rich nomadic heritage with rapid urban development and a strong orientation toward the future. I was also struck by the diversity of cultural influences that have shaped Kazakhstan throughout its complex and multidimensional history. Different communities, languages, memories, and traditions coexist and interact here, creating a cultural landscape that is both dynamic and deeply layered. For me, Kazakhstan is a place where questions about identity, belonging, and cultural transformation are constantly being negotiated, which makes it an incredibly interesting environment to live and work in. TCA: How would you assess the current state of cultural relations between Germany and Kazakhstan? What changes have you observed in these relations in recent years? Friederike van Stephaudt: I would describe the cultural relations between Germany and Kazakhstan as lively, productive, and based on genuine mutual interest. What I particularly appreciate is that cultural exchange today is no longer understood as a one-way transfer of knowledge or artistic practices. There is a strong desire on both sides to learn from one another. While Germany and Kazakhstan often approach cultural, social, or artistic questions from different perspectives, we also discover many similarities and shared concerns. Topics such as social transformation, memory, sustainability, inclusion, and digitalization are relevant in both countries. Over recent years, I have observed a growing openness toward collaborative formats that allow artists, cultural professionals, and institutions to work together as equal partners. TCA: The Goethe-Institut’s mission is not limited to promoting the German language; it also aims to foster dialogue between cultures. In Kazakhstan, which of these two areas are you currently prioritizing? Friederike van Stephaudt: For us, these two areas cannot really be separated. We do not prioritize one over the other because language and cultural dialogue are closely interconnected and mutually reinforcing. Learning a language always means engaging with another culture. It offers access to different perspectives, ways of thinking, and forms of expression. At the same time, meaningful cultural exchange becomes much richer when people can communicate directly with one another. This is why we see language promotion and intercultural dialogue as two sides of the same coin, and our work aims to strengthen both equally. TCA: How strong is the interest in learning German in Kazakhstan? Have the motivations and aspirations of young people who want to learn German changed in recent years? Friederike van Stephaudt: Interest in learning German...