Minister of Science and Higher Education, Sayasat Nurbek, has announced the allocation of funds from the state budget to finance science in Kazakhstan, QazMonitor reports citing Tengrinews.kz.
"In the next three years, approximately 650 billion tenge will be allocated solely for the financing of science, including grant funding and targeted programs. Such a substantial allocation has not been seen in nearly 30 years. We are now directing nearly $1.5 billion directly towards scientific initiatives," stated Sayasat Nurbek during his speech at the opening of the II Conference on Kazakhstan-China cooperation in Astana.
The Minister highlighted that around $9 billion will be allocated to support fundamental studies.
Sayasat Nurbek also emphasized that the ministry aims to increase funding for the scientific sector to 1 percent of the GDP.
Overall, funding is gauged as a percentage of the GDP. In 1991, we had 0.84 percent; in 2021, it was 0.12 percent, and in 2022, it was 0.13 percent. This year, we've reached 0.25 percent. Our goal is to reach 1 percent by 2027-2028 by pooling all efforts to bolster investments in science. The government is now providing substantial and systematic support. We recognize this as an absolute priority.
The official also revealed plans for the development of a new law on science and technology policy, which will introduce up to 150% tax incentives for businesses.
