Kazakhstan Ministry Refutes Russian Language Decline Claims and Details School Language Policy
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan announced that Yevgeny Bobrov, the Consul General of the Russian Federation who spoke about a downturn in Russian language instruction in Kazakh schools, has completed his diplomatic assignment. The ministry’s confirmation was reported by there.kz.
Aibek Smadiyarov, a spokesperson for the ministry, dismissed Bobrov’s statements as unreliable. He suggested that the consul general might not have had access to all the information collected in the country. Smadiyarov stated that data from the Ministry of National Education shows which languages are taught in specific schools. He explained the current distribution: in 3,957 of Kazakhstan’s 7,711 public schools, instruction is offered exclusively in Kazakh; in 1,203 schools it is delivered in Russian; and 2,551 institutions provide coursework in both Kazakh and Russian.
Smadiyarov also noted that Bobrov is no longer stationed in Kazakhstan and does not hold an active role in the country. He commented that Bobrov has completed his diplomatic mission with the Kazakh authorities.
Earlier, Bobrov claimed that the number of schools and classes teaching Russian had been shrinking in Kazakhstan and that the subject of Russian language had been removed from the curriculum for first-year students taught in Kazakh. These remarks have since been contradicted by the official data cited by the Ministry of National Education and the comment from the foreign ministry.
There is also mention of past restrictions related to access to a Russian TV channel within the country, reflecting ongoing debates over media and language policy in Kazakhstan. The government’s position emphasizes that language education is determined by national education policy and local school choices rather than by external diplomatic statements. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Education continue to monitor and report on language instruction trends across the schooling system. This ongoing dialogue aims to ensure clarity about how languages are taught in public schools and to address public questions about language use in Kazakh society. The commentary from the ministry is intended to provide a factual account of the education landscape and to counter claims that misrepresent the current policy framework. (Source: there.kz)