Dear colleagues, good afternoon!

In accordance with the instructions of the Head of State Kassym-Jomart Kemelevich Tokayev, a comprehensive reform of the sports industry is being carried out in the country.

Let me briefly inform you about the progress of implementing these instructions and the proposed systemic measures.

The Ministry has developed a draft law "On Physical Culture and Sports" aimed at systemic renewal of the industry. The document was approved on January 29, 2025 in the second reading of the Mazhilis and submitted to the Senate for consideration.

The bill provides for a number of significant innovations:

- granting the Ministry the authority to set limits on the use of budget funds allocated for the maintenance of professional clubs in team sports;

- establishment of a ban on budgetary financing of athletes who do not have citizenship of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

- clarification of the concept of “priority sports” and approval of their regional list;

- imposing on accredited sports federations the responsibility for taking preventive measures against religious extremism and terrorism;

- introduction of additional requirements for accreditation of sports federations;

- consolidation of the concept of “accompanying person of an athlete with a disability”;

- introduction of a mechanism for rotation of heads of state organizations in the field of physical culture and sports.

One of the key areas of the reform is the transition to a vertical management system in the sports sector.

In this regard, reports from the republican accredited sports federations were heard, as a result of which new leaders were appointed in 8 federations.

In addition, a Commission has been created under the Ministry to approve candidates for the positions of heads of regional sports departments.

To date, the commission has approved candidates from 11 regions: Aktobe, Pavlodar , Karaganda, West Kazakhstan, Ulytau, Kyzylorda, Zhetysu, North Kazakhstan, Kostanay, Turkestan and Almaty regions.

Also, as part of the implementation of the bill, a package of new by-laws is being developed. Let me briefly touch on the most significant of them.

In order to improve the efficiency of using budget funds allocated to support professional clubs in team sports, a system of limiting expenses for their maintenance is being introduced using the established value of the monthly calculation index (MCI).

This mechanism will allow for inflationary processes to be taken into account and will ensure the stability of funding volumes, eliminating their automatic annual reduction.

Taking into account the current trend of redistribution of budgetary resources in favor of the development of mass and youth sports, a maximum level of funding for professional sports clubs is simultaneously established.

One of the key innovations was the definition of about 60 priority sports. This list includes disciplines included in the programs of the Olympic, Paralympic, Deaflympic, Asian and Para-Asian Games, as well as non-Olympic sports represented at the Asian and Para-Asian Games, and national sports.

It is proposed to transform the status of republican and regional accredited sports federations, equating them with national ones.

In this regard, the following additional requirements for accreditation are introduced:

- mandatory membership of local accredited federations in the national federation for the relevant sport;

- development and approval of national standards of sports training;

- the presence of membership of national federations for Olympic and non-Olympic sports in international sports organizations recognized by the International Olympic Committee, and/or recognition by the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

A new regulation is being introduced aimed at providing support for athletes of the first disability group who have severe musculoskeletal, visual and intellectual disabilities.

The accompanying person will be with such an athlete during the training process and participation in competitions at their place of residence, provide assistance with changing clothes, transferring from a wheelchair, undergoing medical examinations and other activities provided for in the individual training plan.

The implementation of this standard will improve the quality of training of athletes with disabilities for national and international competitions. The measure will cover about 1,671 athletes in the period from 2025 to 2027.

The next innovation is the introduction of a mechanism for rotating the heads of state organizations in the field of physical culture and sports once every five years.

The goal is to ensure the effective use of the professional potential of managers at the level of administrative-territorial units.

Rotation is carried out within the relevant region. If there is only one specialized organization operating in the region, rotation is carried out with the heads of organizations of neighboring districts or cities within the same region.

Dear colleagues, work on improving the regulatory framework in the field of physical culture and sports is being carried out on a systematic basis. Currently, the Ministry is developing a second package of amendments and additions to the relevant law. It provides for:

1. definition of concepts and powers related to standard per capita financing in children's and youth sports schools (DYUSSh);
2. granting the authorized body the right to approve the methodology, rules for per capita financing, the procedure for placing a state order and requirements for the accreditation of children's and youth sports schools.

The Ministry has already begun implementing this initiative.

After the approval of the relevant regulatory legal acts (rules for per capita financing, methodology, rules for accreditation and placement of state orders for children and youth sports schools), a phased introduction of per capita standard financing in all children and youth sports schools in the country is planned from January 1, 2026.

For reference: the implementation of this measure in the period from 2026 to 2028 will require 76.7 billion tenge from the state budget (25.6 billion tenge annually, starting in 2026).

As part of raising the status of the coaching profession, the Ministry also provides for an increase in average wages by 30% for the implementation of programs in accordance with the updated unified sports standards.

In order to digitally transform the industry, the Ministry is implementing the Physical Culture and Sports (E-Sport) platform.

By the end of 2025, it is planned to launch three key modules in pilot mode:

- a single database of passports of athletes, coaches, judges and methodologists;

- electronic calendar of sports events;

- a unified register of sports facilities.

By the end of this year, it is also planned to complete all necessary work and gradually introduce the platform in full in the following areas:

-      management of sports competitions;

- maintaining personal passports of athletes, coaches and judges;

- management of sports infrastructure;

- formation and maintenance of electronic competition protocols;

- automation of the provision of public services in the field of sports.

In order to comprehensively analyze the state and current problems of the sports industry in 2024, special working groups were created in the regions. Based on the results of their work, a number of systemic issues were identified and specific proposals for their solution were formulated. In particular, insufficient continuity in the training of sports reserves and high-level athletes, as well as an imbalance in the development of Olympic and non-Olympic sports were noted.

In this regard, the transfer of regional physical culture and sports organizations that provide training for athletes of regions, cities of national significance and the capital to the jurisdiction of an authorized body is being considered. This measure is aimed at improving the management system and developing high-performance sports.

The implementation of these reforms and legislative changes will give new impetus to strengthening the international authority of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the sports sphere.

At the same time, large-scale transformations take time. I am confident that both the Ministry and regional sports departments and republican federations will demonstrate a high level of responsibility and professionalism in implementing the tasks set.

The report is complete. Thank you for your attention!