Nazarbayev says “normal kindergartens and schools” are needed, not “palaces”

    By Renat Tashkinbayev
    President Nazarbayev has criticized the construction of social facilities, Tengrinews.kz reports fr om a meeting dedicated to summarizing the results of 2012 and specifying the course for implementation of the Stragtegy-2050.
    “We have built schools and kindergartens that look like palaces. One kindergarten in Ust-Kamenogorsk is not a kindergarten, it’s a palace. Kindergartens all over the world normally combine 2 or 3 bedroom apartments, where children can play, eat, sleep and study in the same place. And what do we build? - a botanical garden and a swimming pool. A swimming pool in a kindergarten is not good for children: they often get sick in our weather. We need simple buildings, where children can spend time and study. We need normal schools wh ere young people study, without any atrium or domes. How many schools could have been built at the cost of one such school? I instructed you to review these projects and revise old construction rules: standards are not being followed. Serik Akhmetov, this is my last warning,” the president said.
    Nazarbayev pointed out Kazakhstan still had 189 schools and 69 healthcare facilities that are in “emergency condition”.
    33 thousand children are studying in three shifts at 92 schools. At the same time, according to the president, there are many schools with a smaller number of students than they were built for, e.g. 150 children at schools built for 1,000 children.
    “Let’s agree to stop constructing new buildings until we eliminate the three-shift education and emergency-state schools. All construction processes that have been started should be completed, as money has been allocated for them. Let’s sort out all the emergency schools and eliminate the three-shift education system first. Healthcare facilities should be dealt with as well. There is not much time. The decision should be made in 2-3 weeks. The allocated money and the available resources must be used to completely overhaul the social facilities this year,” Nursultan Nazarbayev said.