Government to Overhaul Legal Framework Following New Constitution

2026-03-18 - 08:23

The Astana Times provides news and information from Kazakhstan and around the world. ALMATY — The government must move quickly to bring legislation into line with Kazakhstan’s new constitution by adopting five new constitutional laws, amendments to eight existing constitutional laws, and changes to more than 60 laws, including codes, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov said at a March 18 government meeting on implementing the new Basic Law. Government must move quickly to bring legislation into line with Kazakhstan’s new Constitution, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov said at a March 18 government meeting on implementing the new Basic Law. Photo credit: Prime Minister’s press service. “The country’s Basic Law will strengthen political stability and allow for the further modernization of all spheres of the economy and society,” Bektenov said. He added that the constitution sets out long-term principles of unity, justice, law and order, while guaranteeing broader public participation in political life, the protection of citizens’ rights and freedoms, and the conditions for the development of human capital, science, culture, the digital environment, and environmental safety. Labor and healthcare At the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Information Aida Balayeva said planned amendments to the Social and Labor Codes would establish the right of every citizen to work and require the state to create conditions for its realization. “We are adapting labor legislation to new forms of employment and creating high-quality jobs, so that social policy can take on a new strategic dimension,” she said. Balayeva also said the new constitution would not reduce the volume of guaranteed free medical care. Instead, sources of financing would be expanded through amendments to the Code on Public Health, with funding expected not only from the state budget but also from international organizations and national companies. “The volume of state-guaranteed medical care remains unchanged, and citizens’ rights are not only preserved but also strengthened. The insurance package will become an effective tool for accessing most types of routine and high-tech medical care,” Balayeva said. Data protection is among the key priorities Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev outlined plans to strengthen personal data protection, which is now explicitly guaranteed by the constitution. He said the government plans amendments to the Administrative Code, Criminal Code, and laws on personal data and cybersecurity, alongside new technical safeguards such as data masking and hashing, tighter limits on data extraction from state databases, mandatory breach notifications, and the creation of registers of personal data operators and trusted foreign recipients. “This will allow for technical data protection and reduce the risk of data disclosure in case of unauthorized access. It is planned to limit the data download from state databases. Priority will be given to the integration of information systems, and downloads will be prohibited, except for certain cases strictly defined by the Law,” he said. Authorities are also considering criminal liability for mass data leaks and raising administrative fines to 5,000 monthly calculation indices. Special legal regimes planned for Astana and Alatau Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin said draft laws have been prepared to introduce a special legal framework for Astana and the city of Alatau. Under the proposals, Alatau would receive a “city of accelerated development” regime, including special taxation, investor protections, advanced international standards, and support for unmanned transport and digital assets. Astana, meanwhile, would receive updated governance mechanisms in urban planning, migration and transport to improve the quality of the urban environment and strengthen the capital’s long-term development. “The draft law on the city of Alatau provides for a special tax regime and investment protection. In Astana, we are establishing management features that will ensure the sustainable development of the capital,” Zhumangarin said. According to him, the Alatau bill is scheduled for a second reading in Parliament on March 27, while the bill on Astana’s status is expected to be submitted to the Mazhilis by the end of April. Education, science and technology Education officials said the new constitution creates the basis for broad reform across the sector. Minister of Education Zhuldyz Suleimenova said the document treats the development of education, science, innovation and technology as a strategic state priority and gives primary education independent constitutional status, which she described as a direct guarantee of equal access and human capital formation. She said reforms would cover the entire education system, from preschool to vocational and secondary education, and would include updated state standards, ecological education, stronger IT and digital skills training, and new textbooks. “Special attention will be paid to the development of the IT industry and digital competencies. This will allow the younger generation to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills, provide training for competitive specialists, and strengthen the country’s potential in the context of rapid technological development,” Suleimenova said. Under current plans, textbooks for the third, fourth, seventh and eighth grades will be updated in 2026, while new books for the first and fifth grades and revised books for tenth and eleventh grades are planned for 2027. New textbooks for the second and sixth grades are expected in 2028. Minister of Science and Higher Education Sayasat Nurbek said Kazakhstan is moving toward a development model in which citizens’ intelligence and the ability to generate technology become central state priorities. He said education is being transformed from a social service into a productive force directly linked to economic growth, while support for science will increasingly be tied to industry, the national economy, and defense capacity. Nurbek added that Kazakhstan is also changing how public funds are distributed in higher education. Starting next year, a National University Ranking will be introduced to help determine the allocation of the state education order, while stronger universities will receive greater academic autonomy. Ecology, public order and justice reform Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Yerlan Nyssanbayev said that the implementation of the constitution’s environmental provisions will focus on a preventive regulatory model, shifting attention from eliminating damage to preventing it. Other priorities include automated monitoring systems for industrial enterprises, stronger accountability for emissions violations, and expanded use of integrated environmental permits to embed environmental requirements in industrial planning. Minister of Internal Affairs Yerzhan Sadenov said the constitutional principles of Justice, Law and Order will guide the work of law enforcement bodies. He said implementation will continue through a new law on the prevention of offenses, with a focus on earlier intervention, stronger protection for minors and victims of domestic violence, and the involvement of communities and new preventive actors. “Emphasis on involving new prevention subjects and the public, early response, strengthening individual work, and protecting the rights of minors and victims of domestic violence,” he said. Bektenov said the labor and social sphere would be among the priorities in the legislative package. He instructed the Ministry of Labor to submit amendments to the Social and Labor Codes by April 1, focusing on employment policy, the development of labor potential, and adaptation to new forms of work in the digital economy.