By Marat Yermukanov (8/27/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

The Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan forecasts that this year, the country will produce a total of 12,8 million tons of grain, three million tons less than last year. But last year’s crop was so poor in quality that many small farmers found that the trouble was not worth the expense and left their cornfields without harvesting them. Most grain producers had to sell their wheat with low protein content at a great loss to casual buyers or fed their crop to cattle.

By Maria Utyaganova (8/27/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

The book Healthy Living, published with the support of the UNAIDS Program and the Kyrgyz Ministry of Education, had been in use since 1999. The book was initiated as the response to the outbreak of syphilis in 1997 and as a mean to educate and protect young people from venereal diseases. The book was published in Russian, Kyrgyz and Uzbek languages and dedicated to teach students about safe sex, pregnancy, abortion, and HIV/AIDS prevention, the harmful consequences of tranquilizers, drugs and alcoholism.

By Aisha Aslanbekova (8/13/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Participants were government officials, leaders of a number of political parties, representatives of non-governmental organizations and mass media, who along with the socio-economic situation discussed such issues as the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections, the role and responsibilities of civil society, political parties and mass media in the country’s development process.

In his speech, Prime-minister Nikolai Tanaev said that political pluralism in the country is expanding, and civil society is livening up. In the speeches of the participants there were also remarks about stability and improvements in the social-economic sphere as well as other positive achievements and processes in the country.