This article explores the transformative journey of universities in Kazakhstan, focusing on the results of recent research on the quality of higher education. The study delves into the significant reforms and innovations implemented in the Kazakhstani higher education system, assessing their impact on academic standards, student performance, and institutional efficiency. Through comprehensive data analysis and expert interviews, the research highlights the strides made in improving educational quality, fostering international collaborations, and integrating modern technologies in teaching and learning. The findings underscore the critical role of government policies, industry partnerships, and community participation in driving these transformations. This article provides valuable information on the challenges and successes experienced by Kazakhstani universities, providing a blueprint for further advances in the sector of higher education. The key factors contributing to the success of these reforms include strong government support, international collaboration, robust quality assurance mechanisms, a focus on research and innovation, and professional development for educators. While challenges remain, the future of higher education in Kazakhstan looks promising, provided that these efforts continue and are further refined to address existing gaps.

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of tourist resources, conditions and opportunities of sacral tourism in Kazakhstan using panel data (time series and cross-sectional) regression analysis for a sample of 14 regions of Kazakhstan observed over the period from 2004 to 2022. The article presents an overview of modern methods of assessment of the tourist and recreational potential of sacral tourism, as used by national and foreign scientific works. The main focus is on the method of estimating the size and effectiveness of the tourist potential, which reflects the realization and volume of tourist resources and their potential. The overall results show a significant positive effect in that the strongest impact on the increase in the number of tourist residents is the proposed infrastructure and the readiness of regions to receive tourists qualitatively. This study is expected to be of value to firm managers, investors, researchers, and regulators in decision- making at different levels of government.

The study is devoted to the problem of processing the organic waste that is generated as a result of paper, textiles and other industries production as well as food waste. The growth of economic activity in Kazakhstan has resulted in a significant challenge with regard to industrial waste management. The accumulation of waste on the territory of the country has reached 31.72 billion tonnes, comprising approximately 2.5 billion tonnes of hazardous waste, 50 million tonnes of phosphorus-containing waste, over 2.5 million tonnes of lead-zinc waste and more than 120 million tonnes of solid domestic waste. The study object was the Shymkent-Kokys polygons. According to the research carried out, it was determined that the titer of microorganisms of the studied groups is 1–10 CFU/g in the soils selected around the garbage in the area of the Shymkent landfill. The titer of microorganisms in the soil horizons was high at a depth of 20–30 cm and the titer were 10⁹ cells/mL. The structure of the soil microbiome obtained around the Shymkent Waste Landfill consists of actinomycetes, micromycetes, heterotrophic bacteria, nitrifying, nitrogen-fixing bacteria, enterobacteria, as well as algae and protozoa. It was found that strains KPA1, KPA2 Pseudomonas sp. strains KPA3, KPA4, KPA5 Bacillus sp. isolated from the soils of the Shymkent-Kokys landfill are able to recycle domestic waste with a high content of cellulose and organic substances up to 95%–97%. The findings can be used to develop more effective organic cellulosic waste management strategies and improve the environmental sustainability of various industries.

This study delves into the evolving landscape of smart city development in Kazakhstan, a domain gaining increasing relevance in the context of urban modernization and digital transformation. The research is anchored in the quest to understand how specific technological factors influence the formation of smart cities within the region. To this end, the study adopts a Spatial Autoregressive Model (SAR) as its core analytical tool, leveraging data on server density, cloud service usage, and electronic invoicing practices across various Kazakhstani cities. The crux of the research revolves around assessing the impact of these selected technological variables on the smart city development process. The SAR model’s application facilitates a nuanced understanding of the spatial dynamics at play, offering insights into how these factors vary in influence across different urban areas. A key finding of this investigation is the significant positive correlation between the adoption of electronic invoicing and smart city development, a result that stands in contrast to the relatively insignificant impact of server density and cloud service usage. The conclusion drawn from these findings underscores the pivotal role of digital administrative processes, particularly electronic invoicing, in driving the smart city agenda in Kazakhstan. This insight not only contributes to the academic discourse on smart cities but also holds practical implications for policymakers and urban planners. It suggests a strategic shift towards prioritizing digital administrative innovations over mere infrastructural or technological upgrades. The study’s outcomes are poised to guide future smart city initiatives in Kazakhstan and offer a reference point for similar emerging economies embarking on their smart city journeys.

The nexus between foreign direct investment, natural resource endowment, and their impact on sustained economic growth, is contentious. This study investigates the resource curse hypothesis and the effects of FDI on economic growth in Kazakhstan. The study covers the period from 1990 to 2022 and employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model and Toda-Yamamoto causality methods. The Bounds cointegration results reveal the existence of long-term equilibria between per capita GDP and the predictors. The findings reveal a significant impact of oil rents on economic growth, contradicting the resource curse hypothesis and suggesting a resource boon instead. In stark contrast, the impact of FDI on Kazakhstan’s economic growth is found to be insignificant, despite the presence of a causal nexus. Furthermore, economic freedom and export diversification have a positive significant impact on economic growth, while inflation exhibits a negative but significant impact. Although governance has a direct impact on GDP per capita, it is deemed insignificant, as the negative average governance index implies poor governance. Expectedly, the result establishes a causal effect between export diversification, economic freedom, governance, oil rents, and economic growth. This underscores the fundamental role played by the interplay of diversification, economic freedom, governance, and oil rents in fostering sustainable economic growth. In addition, economic freedom stimulates gross fixed capital formation, indicating that it enhances domestic investment. Notably, the findings refute the crowding-out effect of FDI on domestic investment in Kazakhstan. Consequently, to escape the resource curse and the Dutch disease syndrome, the study advocates for enhancing good governance capabilities in Kazakhstan. Thus, we recommend that good governance could reconcile the twin goals of economic diversification and deriving benefits from oil resources, ultimately transforming oil wealth into a boon in Kazakhstan.