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Kazakhstan

At A Glance

Indices and Rankings
Gender Gap Ranking¹	#31
Gender Inequality Index²	0.334
HDI Ranking³	#68

Political Participation
Women parliamentarians lower/upper houses	24%/4%
Women in Parliament ranking	#49
Women at ministerial level (ranking)	5%(#85)
Year women received right to vote/be elected	1924/1924

Overview
Government	Republic with authoritarian presidential rule
Total population	17.5 million
GDP per capita (PPP)	$13,000
HDI ranking³	#68
Population under age 15	24%
Urban population	59%
Internet users	45%
Languages	Kazakh 64.4%, Russian 95%

Indices		Education & Employment		Political Participation
Sources (January 2013): CIA World Factbook, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Internet World Stats, MDG Info 2010, Quota Project, UNESCO Institute for Statistics, UNICEF ChildInfo , UNICEF State of the World's Children 2011, United Nations Development Project Human Development Reports, World Economic Forum, World Health Organization Global Health Observatory Database. 1.The World Economic Forum's Gender Gap index assesses how well countries divide resources and opportunities amongs male and female populations in four areas: economic participation and opportunity (salaries, participation levels and access to high-skilled employment), educational attainment (access to basic and higher level education), health and survival (life expectancy and sex ratio), and political empowerment (representation in decision-making structures). 2. The UNDP's Gender Inequality Index is designed to reveal the extent to which national human development achievements are eroded by gender inequality. It is a composite measure reflecting inequality in achievements between women and men in three dimensions: reproductive health (maternal mortality ratio and adolescent fertility rate), empowerment (share of parliamentary seats, and secondary and higher education attainment levels) and the labour market (women's participation in the work force). It varies between zero (when women and men fare equally) and one (when men or women fare poorly compared to the other in all dimensions). 3. The UNDP's Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary composite index that measures a country's average achievements in three basic aspects of human development: health, knowledge, and income. It was created to emphasize that people and their capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for assessing the development of a country, not economic growth alone. 4. Vulnerable employment is a Millenium Development Goal (MDG) 1B indicator; vulnerable employments are lower productivity and informal activities such as own-account workers and unpaid family workers. They are therefore more likely to lack benefi ts associated with decent employment, such as adequate social security and recourse to effective mechanisms for social dialogue. Vulnerable employment is often characterized by inadequate earnings, low productivity and substandard working conditions that undermine fundamental labour rights.
Gender Gap Ranking¹	#31	Adult literacy rate, females as a % of males	100%	Women parliamentarians lower/upper houses	24%/4%
Gender Inequality Index²	0.334	Population with secondary education, female/male ratio	97%	Women in Parliament ranking	#49
		Vulnerable employment for women (men)⁴	33.9% (30.1%)	Women at ministerial level (ranking)	5% (#85)
				Year women received right to vote/be elected	1924/1924
		Health		Quotas
		Lifetime risk in maternal death, 1 in	770	Quota type	None legislated
		Births per woman	2.6	Constitutional quota in lower house	No
		Births per 1000 women aged 15-19	31	Electoral quota in lower house	No
				Voluntary political party quotas	No

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Our Partner

Shymkent Women's Resource Center (SWRC) is a non-profit organization in Kazakhstan whose programs aim to combat trafficking and violence against women and to promote women’s rights through the active participation of women and youth in society. SWRC engages in civic and legal education, organizes campaigns to combat trafficking, creates self-help support groups for women, provides psychological and legal counseling, and manages a shelter for victims of trafficking. Read More >

In The News

Smartphones could help women who experience street harassment - Slate Magazine (blog) / April 9, 2013

Iranian New Year 2013: Celebrate These Persian Women Who Have Fought For ... - PolicyMic / March 25, 2013

Kazakhstan: Grappling with Human Trafficking - EurasiaNet / December 3, 2012

Kyrgyzstan: Dismissal of the complaint lodged by Mrs. Tolekan Ismailova - FIDH / November 29, 2012

Reports & Updates

WLP Travels to Peru for Annual Partners Meeting and the World Movement for Democracy Seventh Global Assembly

November 14, 2012 | 2012 Events, Americas, Leading to Action, Brazil, Egypt, Political Participation, Indonesia, Iran, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Turkey, Zimbabwe

In October, WLP traveled to Lima, Peru for the World Movement for Democracy (WMD) seventh Global Assembly, Democracy for All: Ensuring Political, Social, and Economic Inclusion. The conference brought together WLP Partners and more than 500 democracy activists, practitioners, and scholars, providing an important opportunity for learning, exchange, and networking with civil society actors from across the world.

June 3, 2011 | Asia, Leading to Action, Political Participation, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan

WLP convened a Regional Institute on women’s political participation in Central Asia on April 14, 2011 in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, co-organized by WLP Kazakhstan/Shymkent Women's Resource Center and WLP Kyrgyzstan/Human Rights Center “Citizens Against Corruption.” Thirty women leaders, including activists, journalists, students, as well as local and state administrators, participants shared experiences on networking with organizations to advance women’s political participation, promoting the transparency of government agencies, and developing women's leadership in the Central Asia region. They also highlighted the importance of monitoring governmental institutions on the development and implementation of gender policy, analyzing local and national elections, and empowering women on the ground to push for positive change for their full political participation.

November 11, 2010 | Asia, eNews 27, Leading To Choices, Leadership, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan

For civil society, Central Asia has become one of the most difficult places to work. Freedom of assembly, an open press, and internet usage have eroded throughout the region.Uzbekistan has remained all but closed to NGO activity. WLP's former partner in Uzbekistan, Tashkent Women's Resource Center (TWRC), which organized WLP's first Central Asia Regional Institute in 2005 in cooperation with Shymkent Women's Resource Center (SWRC), was forcibly closed by the government in 2006.Kyrgyzstan has seen significant political turmoil, with a coup in April. A violent outbreak in southern Kyrgyzstan in early June led to further attempts to intimidate and silence human rights activists.

June 27, 2008 | Leading To Choices, Kazakhstan

Wishing to reach beyond the vulnerabilities of unemployment, workshop participants expressed their desire to develop leadership skills not only in their personal lives and communities, but also as a tool to build confidence and communication skills for interacting with employers. Participants hoped to be able to share their experiences and become mentors to younger colleagues.

August 13, 2006 | Leading To Choices, Leadership, Kazakhstan

Many women activists left the workshop with renewed energy for social advocacy. "After attending the workshop I am convinced of the importance of being a leader in my own life. I shall work out a plan of action for the next five years. I want to know more about technology and how to use technology effectively to strengthen public advocacy for the welfare of women," said one participant.

September 1, 2005 | Asia, Leadership, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan

Women's Learning Partnership (WLP) together with its regional partner convened a Central Asia Regional Learning Institute for Women's Leadership from August 24-27, 2005 in Shymkent, Kazakhstan. NGO leaders, journalists, and human rights activists from five countries - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan - participated in the Institute, which consisted of a week-long intensive skills development program in participatory leadership, interactive facilitation, persuasive communication, and effective advocacy campaign development. The Institute took place amidst an atmosphere of heightened security and political tensions in the region. In the face of increasing restrictions on civil society and NGOs, human rights, and press freedom in the region, WLP brought participants together to create a regional network of women's rights advocates working to advance women in leadership and decision-making positions.

August 27, 2005 | Leadership, Leading To Choices Multimedia, 2005 Events, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan

The Institute took place amidst an atmosphere of heightened security and political tensions in the region. In the face of increasing restrictions on civil society and NGOs, human rights, and press freedom in the region, WLP brought participants together to create a regional network of women’s rights advocates working to advance women in leadership and decision-making positions.