28 October 2026
Tokayev: Using Drinking Water at Car Washes Is "Absurd"
In his address, Tokayev called washing cars with drinking water absurd and demanded the tariff reform be finished — "water must cost what it's really worth."
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, delivering his annual State of the Nation Address on October 28, called it absurd to use drinking water at car wash stations.
"The government and local administrations should strengthen control over water consumption, reduce network losses, and eliminate the misuse of drinking water, particularly at car wash stations. This, of course, is also absurd — using drinking water at car wash stations," Tokayev said.
According to the President, the country's water scarcity problem requires systemic and decisive measures, and the principles of rational, careful water use must be implemented everywhere.
The head of state recalled the large-scale water tariff reform launched on his instruction and demanded it be brought to its logical conclusion. "Water should be priced at its real cost," he stressed.
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Tokayev also instructed the government to complete the creation of a national water resources information system as soon as possible — digital accounting, he said, will allow informed decisions when planning new industrial facilities.
It is precisely this uneven assessment of water's "real cost" across regions that already creates a paradox on household bills today: residents in some cities pay several times more for the same cubic meter of water than residents elsewhere. A detailed breakdown of why the tariff in Karaganda can be four times higher than in Kyzylorde is available in this ZhKH 24 report: "Same Water, 4x the Price: Why a Cubic Meter Costs Four Times More in Karaganda Than in Kyzylorde".
ZhKH 24 is following the progress of the water tariff reform and will report once the government and local administrations announce concrete decisions on controlling the misuse of drinking water.
28 October 2026
Damir Toktamysov Appointed Deputy Chairman of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee in Kazakhstan's Ministry of National Economy
Damir Toktamysov has been appointed Deputy Chairman of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee in Kazakhstan's Ministry of National Economy.
Damir Toktamysov has been appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee at Kazakhstan's Ministry of National Economy. By order of the chairman of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee, Toktamysov Damir Sabirovich has been designated to this prominent role within the Ministry of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Born in 1985, Damir Toktamysov graduated in 2008 from the S. Seifullin Kazakh Agrotechnical University with a degree in 'Mechanization of Agricultural Production'. In 2011, he received a degree in 'State and Local Governance' from the Karaganda Economic University of Kazpotrebsoyuz, and in 2026, he is set to graduate from the Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
From 2008 to 2015, he held various roles within the Department of the Natural Monopolies Regulation and Competition Protection Committee based in Astana, progressing from lead specialist to department head.
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Between 2015 and 2018, he served as the chief expert in the Water Supply and Sewerage Regulation Department of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee at the Ministry of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
From 2018 to 2022, Toktamysov was the head of the Heat Energy Regulation Department at the same committee.
Since February 2022 until October 2026, he has been the head of the Department of the Natural Monopolies Regulation Committee in the North Kazakhstan region.
Reports the publication ЖКХ24, citing the Energy and Public Utilities Department of the Zhetisu region.
Photo: gov.kz
