People of Kazakhstan Demonstrate a High Level of Social Optimism, DKNews.kz reports.
From July 11 to August 12 of this year, the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan conducted a large-scale public survey. The sample size consisted of 8,000 respondents. Participants included citizens aged 18 and older from 17 regions, as well as the cities of national significance – Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent.
According to the sociological study, 75.9% of citizens believe that the country is currently moving in the right direction.
The highest level of social optimism is observed among the younger generation aged 18-29 (84.6%). With increasing age, optimism about the future of the country tends to decline somewhat, but remains at a fairly high level (age 61 and older – 70.6%). In rural areas (79.3%), citizens are more positive about the current course of the country’s development than in urban areas (73.8%).
Most respondents who believe that the country is moving in the right direction highlight several key reforms that are already being implemented in practice. These can be grouped as follows:
Social Initiatives:
- Construction and modernization of rural and urban schools – 38.2%;
- Implementation of the program “National Fund – for Children” – 29.5%;
- Possibility of partial withdrawal of pension savings from the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund (UAPF) – 20.1%.
Economic Reforms:
- Construction and repair of highways, railway stations, airports – 18.4%;
- Development of agriculture – 13.6%;
- Support for small and medium-sized businesses – 10.3%;
- Growth of domestic production – 9.7%.
Implementation of the “Law and Order” principle and the nationwide campaign “Taza Kazakhstan” (“Clean Kazakhstan”):
- Combating domestic violence – 32.6%;
- Cleaning and improvement of settlements, combating vandalism and lack of civic culture – 14.7%;
- Return of illegally withdrawn assets and capital to the country – 5.8%.
Digitalization of the Country:
- Development of digital public services – 30.7%;
- Introduction of the Digital Family Card and social wallet – 16.1%.
These survey results demonstrate that citizens are noting tangible changes across various spheres of life. This indicates that reforms are beginning to bear fruit, strengthening public trust in state policy and sustaining optimism about the future.
The effective implementation of economic reforms and social initiatives is reflected in the level of public trust in the country’s leadership. According to the survey, the President consistently ranks first in the trust rating, with 82.4% of respondents expressing confidence in him.
Moreover, positive changes in the country directly contribute to the growth of patriotic sentiment. The overwhelming majority of respondents are proud of Kazakhstan and their citizenship – 89.9% (including 49.1% who said “very proud” and 40.8% who said “proud”).
In terms of the country’s future development, respondents identified several areas in which Kazakhstan has the greatest potential to become a leader both regionally and globally.
The top five priority sectors for the country’s development, according to the population, are:
- Agro-industrial sector – 38.9%.
- Digitalization and artificial intelligence – 30.6%.
- Energy – 25.3%.
- Transport and transit – 17.5%.
- Human capital development – 13.1%.
At this stage, respondents believe that the development of these five strategically important areas can bring Kazakhstan to leading positions in the world, ensuring sustainable economic growth and technological progress.
Overall, the results of the sociological survey demonstrate that Kazakhstani society today is observing positive changes in the country. Citizens are experiencing firsthand that reforms are beginning to deliver concrete results. This, in turn, strengthens public trust in state policy and supports optimism about the future.
