Over the past five years, Kazakhstan has added 267,000 hectares of forest, representing a 5% growth in total forested land. At a recent government meeting led by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Yerlan Nyssanbayev, presented updates on efforts to preserve and expand the country's forested areas.
To strengthen forest protection, particularly in regions prone to fires, significant funding has been allocated.
"Last year, KZT 15.9bn ($32.62mn) was used to purchase 526 units of fire-fighting and patrol equipment. This year, for the first time in Kazakhstan's history, KZT 52bn ($106.7mn) has been allocated to acquire 1,384 units of fire-fighting equipment and 921 trailers and mounted devices. Of this, KZT 40bn ($82.1mn) will be financed through leasing," Nyssanbayev reported.
These investments aim to bring forest protection institutions in high-risk fire zones to full operational capacity.
Additionally, early detection systems for forest fires now cover 900,000 hectares of state forest land, reducing the scale of fires. In 2025, a similar system will be implemented in the Semey Ormany reserve, funded by a KZT 3.1bn ($6.5mn) investment. Twelve institutions under the Ministry and regional akimats will also receive KZT 24bn ($49.23mn) in leasing finance for fire prevention equipment.
The country's forest restoration efforts have covered 651,000 hectares over the past four years, including 413,000 hectares on the dried Aral Sea bed. As part of the greening initiative, approximately 12mn seedlings have been planted in various settlements during this period. The expansion of forest nurseries is crucial to these efforts, with plans to reconstruct or build new nurseries across 1,300 hectares.
Despite these initiatives, existing nurseries are deemed insufficient, with outdated technology hampering efforts.
"The country requires the construction of 114 new forest nurseries and the reconstruction of one existing one," Nyssanbayev noted.
Regional authorities have also been involved in the financing of forestry efforts, with over KZT 1bn ($2.1mn) allocated for reconstructing forest nurseries and upgrading forest protection institutions. To sustain the current pace of forest planting, the Ministry is managing a forestry fund of 5.2mn hectares and is working on soil surveys and project development to further expand forested areas.
Another critical element of Kazakhstan's forestry efforts is the collection and storage of seeds, with plans to grow more than 650mn seedlings. Innovative approaches, such as the use of Swedish technology for growing plants with a closed root system in the Semey Ormany reserve, have led to improved survival rates, reaching 90%, while cutting the growing period in half.
The ministry is also pursuing new initiatives, such as offset projects aimed at carbon absorption. A Swiss company has already launched a pilot project in the Akmola region, planting forests across 14,500 hectares. Amendments to national legislation are being drafted to enable similar projects on state forest land, attracting investment from global companies to support forest planting.
Nyssanbayev also highlighted efforts in the reclamation of the dried Aral Sea bed, where Kazakhstan has pioneered 30 years of forest reclamation work. So far, over 600,000 hectares have been planted with forests. To further support these efforts, a new branch of the Kazakh Research Institute of Forestry and Agroforestry is set to open in Kyzylorda, alongside the creation of a forest nursery on the dried Aral Sea bed, designed to grow plant species more suited to the local environment.
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