For four years, the village of Nura in the Talgar district of the Almaty region has been unable to complete a major renovation of its school. Due to the prolonged work, over a thousand children are studying in the akimat building, a cultural center, and other makeshift facilities, reports infohub.kz.
The major renovation began in 2023, with about 1 billion tenge allocated from the budget. Contractors were supposed to finish the work within a year but missed the deadline. As a result, students have to study in temporary spaces, creating additional challenges for both pupils and teachers.
"Our children spent the first year studying in a neighboring village, we were all shuttled there. The following two years they studied in the akimat, the cultural center, and an old store. We were promised that in the fourth year we would be here. But now I see the school is absolutely not ready. We have endless meetings about this. The renovation is not done. We are afraid our children will again be scattered wherever they can go," said Aray Muratova, a resident of Nura.
The Talgar district education department explained that the first contractor, which won the tender, failed to complete the work on time. After an audit, it was declared a dishonest supplier. "After the audit, we had to hold a new competition to restart the work, which took a lot of time. In October 2025, we signed a contract with RGP 'Enbek-Oskemen' under the KUIS, which is a Ministry of Internal Affairs institution. According to the contract, they are to complete the work by July this year," said Aynakul Ushkempirova, head of the education department for Talgar district.
The akimat assured that it monitors the quality and timeline of the renovation daily, and only transfers money to the contractor after receiving certificates of completed work. Mukhtarbay Nurmanov, a representative of the contractor, noted: "There were additional works here. Because of that, there were insufficient funds to complete the remaining tasks. Once additional financing is received, we will finish the remaining work: laying asphalt, installing curbs, and a diesel generator unit."
According to the contractors, interior renovation is planned to be completed by the end of July, with exterior work scheduled for August. Residents hope the school will be ready for the new academic year. Otherwise, they are not prepared to send their children to an unfinished building.