THE MINISTRY OF INDUSTRY AND CONSTRUCTION OF KAZAKHSTAN: TO PREVENT SPOT BUILDING, ALL URBAN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS WILL UNDERGO COMPREHENSIVE URBAN PLANNING EXPERTISE

In accordance with the President's directive aimed at creating a comfortable living environment for the populace, the Ministry has legislatively established the urban planning expertise institution. Deputy Minister of Industry and Construction, Azamat Beyspekov, reported this during a government meeting.

He mentioned that newly developed and revised urban planning projects (including master plans, detailed planning projects, and development projects) will be subject to comprehensive urban planning expertise. This includes checking for compliance with the design solutions of the superior urban planning project during the State Expertise process.

"The development of detailed planning projects ensures the allocation of minimal areas for the greening of blocks and districts. The urban expertise mechanism will ensure these projects adhere to state standards," the deputy minister stated.

Previously, master plans (for cities with populations of less than 100,000) underwent comprehensive expertise through the local executive body—the akimat. For larger cities, the expertise was conducted at the central government level. This process resulted in loss of work time, slow information transfer and processing, delayed decision-making, and unnecessary paperwork. Detailed planning projects and development projects were approved by akimats without undergoing any expertise.

Starting January 2024, all newly developed and revised urban planning projects (master plans, detailed planning projects, and development projects) will undergo comprehensive urban planning expertise at the RSE "State Expertise" based on the "one-stop-shop" principle.

Additionally, a unified mechanism for conducting public discussions during the development of urban projects has been introduced, as stipulated in the Rules for the Development, Coordination, and Approval of Urban Planning Projects (Order of the Minister of Industry and Construction of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated September 30, 2020, No. 505).

To combat illegal construction, the monitoring mechanism for construction (and planned construction) projects has been strengthened through site inspections by architectural authorities. When violations are detected, these authorities forward information to the State Architectural and Construction Supervision (SACS) authorities for further action.