At the first session of the 'Qazaqstan Halyq Keñesi', President of Kazakhstan Qasym-Jomart Toqaev called on writers to stop splitting society by dividing the people into 'shala-Kazakhs' and 'true' Kazakhs, and advocated shifting the focus from the topic of the village to life in cities, reports infohub.kz.
According to the head of state, there is so much talk about the village in Kazakhstan that it has become an axiom that needs no repetition. At the same time, there is a steady global trend toward urbanization.
"Today the city has become the main center of attraction, concentrating all the benefits for a quality life. That is why our unconditional priority is the development and promotion of urban culture. In this context, we need to keep pace with global trends," the President of Kazakhstan noted.
Separately, Qasym-Jomart Toqaev addressed writers who divide Kazakh youth into two parts. The first are 'asphalt' or 'shala' Kazakhs living in the city. The second are true Kazakhs, residents of villages. The President considers such a division fundamentally wrong.
"Today young people living in cities receive a quality education in their native language in Kazakh schools. We need to stop splitting society once and for all. No one has the right to do this," he added.
To change the situation, the head of state instructed the Ministry of Culture to organize literary competitions among writers for works dedicated to urban themes.
Earlier, 'Kursiv' wrote that by 2035 Kazakhstan will need 2.9 million specialists, of which 1.8 million are in working professions.