Overview
Kazakhstan’s 2025 Voluntary National Review (VNR) presents the country’s progress, challenges and policy responses towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda. The review highlights Kazakhstan’s commitment to inclusive economic growth, social protection, climate action and institutional reform through the National Development Plan until 2029 and the Strategy for Achieving Carbon Neutrality by 2060. In 2024, GDP growth reached 4.8 percent, the unemployment rate remained at 4.7 percent, and the national poverty rate declined to 5.0 percent from 5.2 percent in 2022. Kazakhstan also expanded renewable energy generation to 6.43 percent of total electricity production in 2024, while access to safely managed drinking water reached 99.4 percent in urban areas and 97.8 percent in rural areas. The VNR reflects a whole-of-government and multi-stakeholder approach involving public institutions, civil society, academia, international organisations and the private sector in accelerating SDG implementation.
Recommendations
- Strengthen regional development policies to reduce inequalities between urban and rural areas.
- Increase investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies to reduce coal dependency.
- Expand climate adaptation programmes, particularly for flood prevention, drought management and water conservation.
- Increase expenditure on research, innovation and technology transfer to improve industrial competitiveness and sustainable productivity.
- Strengthen sustainable land management, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration programmes.
- Improve waste management systems, recycling infrastructure and circular economy initiatives across all regions.
- Expand inclusive education, healthcare and social protection services for vulnerable populations and remote communities.
- Enhance women’s participation in leadership, science, technology and economic decision-making sectors.
- Strengthen institutional transparency, public participation and anti-corruption mechanisms to improve governance effectiveness.
- Improve SDG financing, monitoring systems and disaggregated data collection to support evidence-based policymaking and effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Conclusion
Kazakhstan’s 2025 VNR demonstrates notable progress across economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development despite continuing global and domestic challenges. Significant achievements include the expansion of social protection systems benefiting over 4.5 million people with ₸5.3 tn in pensions and benefits in 2024, growth in renewable energy infrastructure to 154 facilities with more than 3 GW capacity, and increased public expenditure on education reaching 5.9 percent of GDP. However, major challenges remain, including regional inequalities, dependence on coal and extractive industries, climate vulnerability, land degradation affecting 30 million hectares, and limited research and development expenditure at 0.16 percent of GDP in 2024. Kazakhstan emphasises the importance of stronger partnerships, innovation, climate resilience, institutional reforms and sustainable financing to accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda and ensure that no one is left behind.