Kazakh Voters Increasingly Seek Concrete Policy Solutions, Experts Say

The Astana Times provides news and information from Kazakhstan and around the world. ASTANA — Healthcare, education and social protection are emerging as key areas of competition in Kazakhstan’s election campaign, with experts saying voters are increasingly looking beyond broad promises to how seven political parties intend to deliver measurable improvements in quality of life.  Researchers, healthcare and education specialists and human-capital experts examined how social concerns are shaping party platforms and voter expectations ahead of the election. Photo credit: Kazakhstan Institute for Public Development Those issues were at the center of an Aug. 14 meeting of the Sarap Expert Club in Astana, where researchers, healthcare and education specialists and human-capital experts examined how social concerns are shaping party platforms and voter expectations ahead of the election. The election to the Kurultai, the country’s new unicameral Parliament, is scheduled for Aug. 23. Seven political parties are set to compete, with 545 candidates registered for the race.  Campaigning will end at midnight on Aug. 21, followed by a campaign silence day on Aug. 22. More than 12.6 million people are eligible to vote on Aug. 23. As of Aug. 13, the Central Election Commission had accredited 656 observers representing foreign states and international organizations. Experts said the parties largely agree on the problems across healthcare, education, employment and social protection but increasingly differ over who should provide the solutions, how they should be financed and how their effectiveness should be measured. Zhuldyzai Iskakova, head of the Kazakhstan Institute of Public Development, which organized the Sarap meeting, said the televised debates helped make those differences more visible to voters. Three nationally televised debates have already aired live on Qazaqstan TV, Channel 7 and Jibek Joly, while the final debate is scheduled for Aug. 19 on 24KZ.  Zhuldyzai Iskakova in the center. Photo credit: Kazakhstan Institute for Public Development The first two debates drew a combined audience of around two million viewers, according to experts at the meeting. “They examined their programs in detail and challenged one another,” Iskakova said. “There is a common perception that the parties are broadly similar and that it is difficult to understand what distinguishes them. In reality, there are fundamental differences between them.” From social promises to competing solutions Zhanar Sankhayeva, head of the Department of Political Research at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies, said political parties are placing greater emphasis on social protection, healthcare and education in their election programs. Zhanar Sankhayeva. Photo credit: Kazakhstan Institute for Public Development “Healthcare is among the top three issues of greatest concern to citizens, while education ranks among the top six priorities affecting people’s everyday lives,” she said. Sankhayeva said the substance of party platforms could play an important role in voters’ decisions. She cited a survey by the Institute of Public Policy in which 44.4% of respondents identified parties’ initiatives, policy proposals and campaign promises as one of the important factors influencing their choice. The expert said public expectations in the social sphere are also evolving. While earlier demands focused largely on expanding access to education and healthcare, voters are increasingly concerned with the quality of the services they receive. “I would describe the current competition between parties in the social sphere as a transition from a competition of social promises to a competition of concrete models for solving social problems,” she said. Sankhayeva said the election campaign is now entering a “more mature phase.”  “Voters are also moving from a general interest in the election toward forming specific political preferences,” she said. Long-term priorities  According to Nazarbayev University Vice President Gulmira Qanay, the quality of people’s lives is a clear indicator of how effective or ineffective state policies are. Health, education, safety, professional opportunities and confidence in the future are among the main factors shaping quality of life.  She highlighted the constitutional emphasis on developing human capital, science and education, which should be an important part of the agenda for the future members of the Kurultai.  Gulmira Qanay. Photo credit: Kazakhstan Institute for Public Development “We can see major transformations taking place around the world. If we look at the achievements of leading countries over the past 50 years and examine how they reached their current level of development, much of what we see today is the result of investments made in science, education, medicine and the social sphere,” said Qanay.  However, she also stressed that improvements in quality of life require long-term investment rather than measures tied only to an election cycle. “These are not achievements that appear in a day or two. (…) That is something future members of the Kurultai should also keep in mind,” she added.  After saying that government policy should ultimately be judged by whether it improves people’s quality of life, Qanay said the same principle should apply to higher education, with universities assessed less by formal credentials and more by what graduates are able to do afterward. Qanay said Kazakhstan should place greater emphasis on developing intellectual capital and designing education policy around research, evidence and measurable outcomes, particularly as digitalization and artificial intelligence transform the skills and standards expected of universities and the wider education system. Healthcare challenges Healthcare illustrates the gap that can emerge between policy ambitions and the everyday delivery of public services. Bakytzhan Tazhibay, chair of the AQNIET Kazakhstan Sectoral Trade Union of Healthcare and Public Service Workers and a pediatric urologist, said his review of all seven party platforms showed broad agreement on the sector’s principal challenges. These include unequal access to quality care between major cities and remote villages, a lack of transparency in the mandatory social health insurance system, shortages of medical personnel and the bureaucratic burden placed on healthcare workers. Bakytzhan Tazhibay. Photo credit: Kazakhstan Institute for Public Development “Any reform will remain on paper if we forget about the people responsible for putting it into practice,” Tazhibay said. “At the center of the healthcare system are doctors, nurses, paramedics and other medical workers.” He identified staff shortages and professional burnout as direct threats to the quality and safety of patient care. Although healthcare salaries have increased, he said, many doctors and nurses still work more than one full-time position to provide an adequate income for their families. This problem is particularly acute outside major cities.  He described elections as a “moment of truth for society.”  “This is the time when the country’s course of development is set, determining what our social policies, labor laws, family support, and healthcare system will look like for years to come,” he added.  Tazhibay called for healthcare expenditure equivalent to at least 5%–6% of gross domestic product, more stable base salaries, workloads consistent with professional standards and greater public and trade-union oversight of the social health insurance system. The post Kazakh Voters Increasingly Seek Concrete Policy Solutions, Experts Say appeared first on The Astana Times.