🚗 Expedition No. 2: Exploring the Heart of Kazakhstan

🚗 Expedition No. 2: Exploring the Heart of Kazakhstan
In search of new growth drivers

The Innoker team completed its second research expedition, covering more than 4,500 kilometers and 20 cities and settlements in the central, southern, and northern parts of Kazakhstan. The route passed through key cities and single-industry towns, where field research, interviews with locals, entrepreneurs, and government representatives were conducted.

🗺 Route of Expedition No. 2:
Astana – Karaganda – Shu – Taraz – Shymkent – Turkistan – Kyzylorda – Baikonur – Aralsk – Aralkum – Karabutak – Komsomolskoye – Adaevka – Denisovka – Lisakovsk – Rudny – Kostanay – Auliekol – Arkalyk – Derzhavinsk – Yesil – Zhaksy – Atbasar – Astana

Goals of the expedition:

• Collect data on employment, migration, entrepreneurship, and regional development;

• Analyze the condition of single-industry towns and labor-deficit territories;

• Identify new growth points and cluster potential;

• Conduct qualitative interviews with representatives of local communities, NGOs, businesses, and the public sector.

🔍 Preliminary observations:

• Many regions face an acute shortage of personnel and continued youth outmigration;

• Notable successful local initiatives exist in agro-processing and logistics;

• The territorial planning system needs updating to reflect current demographic and economic realities;

• Road conditions on parts of the route, especially Kyzylorda–Atbasar, were critical, hindering mobility, logistics, and investment activity;

• On the way from Arkalyk to Zhezkazgan, the team had to change the route due to poor road coverage and lack of connectivity, once again highlighting the importance of infrastructure improvements.

🗣 “Our goal is not just to collect data, but to understand the deep processes taking place in the regions and to propose practical solutions. Only through dialogue with local residents and constant analysis can we develop sustainable and realistic development models,” emphasized Nurbek Achilov, economist-analyst and expedition participant.

📊 Expedition results will be included in analytical reports and presentations for government agencies, international partners, and the research community. Special attention will be given to Baikonur, Arkalyk, Lisakovsk, and Auliekol as promising yet under-integrated locations in the current regional development agenda.

🧭 Based on four field expeditions already conducted, the Innoker team is developing a set of recommendations for regional development based on multifactor analysis: employment, infrastructure, migration, entrepreneurial activity, human capital, and social indicators.

🔭 Future plans
Next year we hope to conduct an even larger-scale study, covering more cities and rural areas. This will allow us to create a full picture of regional challenges and opportunities, and prepare proposals for targeted state support programs.