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At the Government session on issues of water supply and wastewater disposal in populated areas, Vice Minister of Industry and Construction Kuandyk Kazhkenov reported on the full implementation of the Head of State’s instruction to provide the population with access to drinking water by the end of 2025,
primeminister.kz reports.
According to him, over the period of implementation of the instruction, approximately 835 billion tenge were allocated from the republican budget for the implementation of more than 1.6 thousand projects, including 132 billion tenge from returned assets through the Special State Fund. Thus, from the Government’s side, the issue of financing has been fully resolved.
As a result, using these funds, centralized water supply systems were provided to 34 cities and 756 rural settlements. Additionally, through local budget funds, integrated block-modules were installed in 699 villages. For comparison, in 2021, 90% of the rural population and 97.5% of the urban population had access to water supply services. Thus, according to information from local executive bodies, to date the target indicator set by the Head of State has been achieved, and 100% coverage of all populated areas of the country has been ensured, including 90 cities and 6,087 rural settlements with a population of 7.5 million people," the Deputy Minister noted.
Attention was also paid to the quality of water supply. Reconstruction and expansion of more than 9.5 thousand km of networks were carried out, including 1.8 thousand km in cities and 7.7 thousand km in rural areas, which made it possible to reduce the level of wear of networks to 38%. At the same time, work on the development of water supply and utility infrastructure continues. In 2026, within the framework of general-purpose transfers, 128 billion tenge are envisaged, of which 78 billion tenge will be directed to water supply and 50 billion tenge to wastewater disposal.
In addition, modernization of water supply and wastewater systems will be financed through borrowed funds within the National Project for the Modernization of the Energy and Utility Sectors. It is planned to attract 1.9 trillion tenge in investments and modernize 2.8 thousand km of wastewater networks, 5 thousand km of water supply networks, and wastewater treatment facilities in 45 cities. Upon completion of the National Project, by 2030 it is planned to reduce the wear level of water supply networks to 33% and wastewater networks to 41%.
For comprehensive planning and control of projects, the institution of a Technical Operator has been introduced. Its activities are aimed at reviewing applications from natural monopoly entities, approving design assignments with priority use of products manufactured in Kazakhstan, examining technical and technological solutions, and monitoring. The Technical Operator does not replace or duplicate the functions of customers or akimats, but ensures unified requirements for the quality and efficiency of technical and technological solutions.
In addition, to determine sources and models of financing and to guarantee tariffs, the institution of a Financial Operator has been introduced. As Kuandyk Kazhkenov emphasized, the measures being taken will minimize the risks of design errors that lead to increased costs and extended implementation timelines.
The issue of reconstruction of urban wastewater treatment facilities was also considered. In 2025, treatment facilities were commissioned in the cities of Aktau and Lenger. By the end of the current year, commissioning is planned in four more cities: Atyrau, Kyzylorda, Karkaralinsk, and Karazhal.
Overall, the implementation of 45 projects for the construction and modernization of wastewater treatment facilities is envisaged, using various sources of financing, including loans from international financial institutions, bond loans through the Baiterek Holding, public-private partnerships, and targeted transfers. In particular, seven projects are planned to be implemented using loans from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Asian Development Bank.
To ensure a comprehensive approach covering the entire life cycle of projects-from application submission to commissioning of facilities or transfer after long-term operation to the balance of natural monopoly entities-a Unified Electronic Platform was launched in November 2025 within the framework of the National Project. As of today, 89 projects have been registered in the system, including 52 water supply projects and 37 wastewater disposal projects. Thirty-one projects have been identified as priorities, implemented by natural monopoly entities with the most worn infrastructure classified as being in the "red zone."
An integral part of the modernization of water supply and wastewater systems, and a necessary condition for ensuring sustainable operation, systematic management, control, and reduction of losses in utility infrastructure, is digitalization. In this regard, work is underway to standardize requirements for automation systems and metering devices with telemetry technology for automatic data collection via communication channels. Within the framework of the National Project, phased automation of water utility processes is envisaged, aimed at reducing losses, accident rates, and electricity costs, as well as increasing the service life of equipment. Implementation of these measures is planned with the involvement of World Bank financing.
Together with domestic and international experts, an assessment of the activities of water utilities in five cities-Astana, Shymkent, Uralsk, Ekibastuz, and Shakhtinsk-was conducted. Based on the results, recommendations for process optimization were prepared, and technical specifications were developed for the preparation of feasibility studies providing for unified digital solutions and phased implementation. Work is ongoing with akimats and natural monopoly entities to form applications for equipping water supply systems with metering devices. In 2026-2028, it is planned to install more than 3.6 million "smart" water meters.
In addition, within the framework of the Head of State’s Address of September 8, 2025, a task was set to attract international experience and competencies into the water sector. Last year, memorandums were signed with major international network operators Veolia, Suez, and Aqualia. The format of cooperation does not involve the transfer of assets, but is aimed at introducing management solutions and best practices while maintaining state control. At present, negotiations are ongoing with a number of Asian companies to expand experience and competencies in managing the country’s water infrastructure.
