President Tokayev appoints six new ministers, including Balaeva and Zhakupov

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has appointed the ministers of internal affairs, trade and integration, culture and information, labor and social protection, as well as the heads of two agencies that have been established just recently: the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Tourism. The corresponding edicts have been published on the president’s website akorda.kz.

What happened? The president issued an edict about the appointment of the six new ministers:

Yerzhan Sadenov as the minister of internal affairs;

Arman Shakkaliyev as the minister of trade and integration;

Aida Balayeva as the minister of culture and information;

Marat Karabayev as the minister of transport;

Svetlana Zhakupova as the minister of labor and social protection;

and Yermek Marzhikpayev as the minister of tourism and sports.

What do we know about the new ministers? Interior Minister Yerzhan Sadenov was born in 1968 in the East Kazakhstan region. During his career, he worked as the head of the Department of Internal Affairs in Ust-Kamenogorsk, the first deputy head of the Department of Internal Affairs of the Mangystau region and head of the Department of Internal Affairs on Transport. His latest position was deputy head of the minister of internal affairs of Kazakhstan.

Minister of Trade Arman Shakkaliyev was born in 1977 in the town of Balkhash in the Karaganda region. Over the years, he was head of the Technical Regulation and Accreditation Department​ of the Eurasian Economic Commission, and chairman of the Committee of Technical Regulation and Metrology under the Ministry of Trade and Integration. His latest position was deputy minister of trade.

Minister of Culture Aida Balayeva was born in 1974 in the Almaty region. Over the years, she worked as deputy head of the internal policy department under the president’s administration and was an aide to the president. Over the period from May 2020 to January 2022, she was the minister of information and social development. Her latest position was deputy head of the president’s administration.

Minister of Transport Marat Karabayev was born in 1987 in Uzbekistan. Over the years, he worked in the Department of Entrepreneurship and Industrial Development of the Turkestan region (formerly South Kazakhstan region) and was head of the department for defense industry development under the Ministry of Digital Development. Prior to the new appointment, he was the minister of industry and infrastructural development (the agency has since been dissolved).

Minister of Labor Svetlana Zhakupova was born in 1968 in the Karaganda region. Over the period from 2013 to 2014, she worked as the deputy minister of labor and social protection. From 2014 to 2017 she was deputy minister of health and social development. From 2013 until the moment of the new appointment, she was also the official representative of vulnerable groups of the country’s population before the president.

Minister of Tourism and Sports Yermek Marzhakpayev was born in 1969 in the city of Astana (at the time Tselinograd). He worked as the head of the Arshaly district and then Zerenda district of the Akmola region. From March 2019 until the new appointment, he worked as the head of the Akmola region.

The context. On September 1, President Tokayev issued an edict on the creation of five new ministries and the dissolution of the Ministry of Industry, which has been replaced by the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Industry. The Ministry of Information has been replaced by the Ministry of Culture and Information, while the Ministry of Culture and Sports has become the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. The new Ministry of Water Resources has taken part of the responsibilities of the Ministry of Ecology.

On September 1, four ministers were removed from office:

Minister of Industry and Infrastructural Development Marat Karabayev;

Minister of Information and Social Development Darkhan Kydyrali;

Minister of Culture and Sports Askhat Oralov;

and Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Zulfiya Suleymenova.

On September 2, President Tokayev also discharged from office Internal Minister Marat Akhmetzhanov, Minister of Trade Serik Zhumangarin and Minister of Labor and Social Protection Tamara Duysenova.