Astana - the capital of Kazakhstan

Akmola steppes have always been the territory of inter ­ethnic communication of various nations and cultures. In the middle of the first millenium BC the Grand Silk Route, mentioned by the great ancient Greek historian Herodotus ran through these steppes. Numerous caravan routes gave birth to cities with prosperous trade and handicrafts. In the XIX-th century Akmola was a substantial commercial and economic centre in the steppe. The history of Akmolinsk starts from the year of 1830, when the fortress with this name was established in the area of Karautkel by the Russian Empire. By the end of the XIX century it had become a district with the population of 6.428, which could boast of three churches, 5 schools, and colleges and three factories. Such was the first stage in the development of the city.

The second stage with the paramount impact for the destiny of the city was the development of the virgin land. In December 1960 the city numbering about 100.000 people turned into the centre of the Tselinny territory, which embraced all northern regions of Kazakhstan. Shortly after in 1961 Akmolinsk changed its name for Tselinograd and grew into a modern and beautiful city with the population of 250000 citizens. Thousands of volunteers from the former USSR came to build the city and live here. Within ten years 4 institutes, 10 schools, 2 museums, 4 cine­mas, 2 wonderful palaces, 4 fashionable hotels, many shops and different institutions were built in the city. Tselinny region became a great agricultural centre with well-developed agricul­tural machine-building, meat-and-milk cattle-breeding and poul-

try farming.

In 1992 the city was returned its former name-Akmola. But in 1998 with the transfer of the capital from Almaty to Akmola, the city got a new symbolic name - Astana. This decision was prompted by economic, ecological and geographical expedien­cy. Overall condition of the city, its territory, its being in fact the geographic centre of Kazakhstan, well-developed transport sys~ tem, balanced natural environment and other factors came to be decisive in making the choice. Shifting the capital to Astana will, surely, kick start the economic uplift to the northern, central and eastern regions of the country. In· other words, the more bal­anced economic development of the country will be achieved. Today's reality is stunning. Astana is all in scaffolds. Construction goes on all round the city. Magnificent buildings of the House of Parliament and the Government building, a great number of new institutions and restored buildings attract the attention of the Astana citizens and the tourists. Astana is becoming the international, business and cultural centre of not only Kazakhstan, but of the Eurasian continent as a whole.

KOKSHETAU

(Since 1999 the centre of Akmolinskaya region)

Kokshetau means Blue Mountains in Kazakh. At any time of the year the mountains here are shrouded in blue haze. Kokshetau land one of the most picturesque areas of the coun­try. The western part of the region is crossed by the full-flowing Ishim River. There is a multitude of fresh and salt water lakes here. It makes possible to build health resorts in this area. The most famous tourist and health centre is Borovoye.

From olden days the region was the cradle of many poets, composers, singers and writers. The akyn-improviser Birzhan Kozhamkulov (celebrated Birzhan-sal) was born and lived here, gladdening his countrymen by his inimitable gift. This was the birthplace of Chockan Valikhanov, the first Kazakh scientist-enlightener, geographer, traveler, writer and ethnographer of the XIX-th century.

The virgin lands development period was a powerful spur in the development of economy and culture of the region. In those years over 3 million hectares of land was turned up and nearly.50 industrial establishments put into operation. They included a textile and haberdashery mill, a chinaware factory, integrated ore-concentration factory and others. From the land of Kokshetau the country received different kinds of raw materials: iron, ore, coal, dolomite, kaolin.

New times that affected all the spheres of human activities have made noticeable advances in the leading sector of the region - agriculture. Today Kokshetau is the administrative and financial centre of the Akmolinskaya region. The government and local authorities have implemented different programs stim­ulating the recovery of agricultural sector. The international pro­gram “Sary-Arka” sets the aim of creating a network of pro­cessing enterprises in the agro-industrial complex of the region. The republican, association “Agro” and American corporation “SGA-system” elaborated a ten - year program with the aim to support private agrarians, providing them with credits and tech­nique. Kazakhstan has always been one of the biggest produc­ers of wheat. The task of Kokshetau region today is to return the glory and pride to their land and people. The first steps on this path are being done; the process of recovering is under way.