Citizen involvement in budgeting and self-governance in Northern Kazakhstan: Achievements and lessons learnt

Sergey Gulyayev

Adress

*Email:

https://doi.org/10.29258/CAJSCR/2026-R1.v5-1/102-109.eng

Thematic cluster: Climate, Environmental Science, Landscape/Agriculture

Type of paper: Research paper

xxxxx xx, 2026

Abstract

In Central Asia, participatory stakeholder approaches and citizen engagement in self-governance have been so far applied rather sporadically. This brief essay thematizes the lessons learnt from executing multiple projects in this field of participation in the Republic of Kazakhstan (RK) over more than two decades. Based on the experience of the Decenta Foundation, the author reflects upon participatory decision making involving ordinary citizens – ranging from participatory public budg-eting to local-level urban planning under numerous initiatives. As the Decenta Foundation director, the author outlines his thoughts on how participatory methodology at the local and oblast levels can improve decision making in otherwise authoritarian settings. The article may excite other Kazakh-stan’s constituencies, rural districts and municipalities to embark on similar efforts.

Download the Paper

Available in English

For citation: Sergey Gulyayev (2026). Citizen involvement in budgeting and self-governance in Northern Kazakhstan: Achievements and lessons learnt. Central Asian Journal of Sustainability and Climate Research, 5(1), 102-109. https://doi.org/10.29258/CAJSCR/2026-R1.v5-1/102-109.eng

Rerefences

Calisto Friant, M. (2019). Deliberating for sustainability: lessons from the Porto Alegre experiment with participatory budgeting. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 11(1), 81-99 (https://doi.org/10.1080/19463138.2019.1570219);

Ebdon, C. & Franklin, A.L. (2006). Citizen Participation in Budgeting Theory. Public Administration Review 66(3), 437-447 (https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00600.x);

Emrich-Bakenova, S. (2022). Local Government in Kazakhstan. In: Farazmand, A. ed. 2022 Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance. Springer, Cham (https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66252-3_3654);

Gustafson, P. & Hertting, N. (2016). Understanding Participatory Governance: An Analysis of Partic-ipants’ Motives for Participation. The American Review of Public Administration 47(5), 538-549 (https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074015626298);

Jung, H. (2022). Online Open Budget: The Effects of Budget Transparency on Budget Efficiency. Public Finance Review 50(1), 91-119 (https://doi.org/10.1177/10911421221093412);

Khagram, S., Archon, F. and de Renzio, P. (2013). Eds. Open Budgets: The Political Economy of Transparency, Participation, and Accountability. Brookings Institution Press (http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7864/j.ctt1262zx);

Marquetti, A., Schonerwald da Silva, C. E. and Campbell, A. (2011). Participatory Economic De-mocracy in Action: Participatory Budgeting in Porto Alegre, 1989-2004. Review of Radical Political Economics 44(1), 62-81 (https://doi.org/10.1177/0486613411418055);

Moldogaziev, T. & Witko, C. (2022). Revisiting the role of civic organizations in Kazakhstan, Kyr-gyzstan, and Tajikistan: Confidence, membership, and democratic practice. Public Administration and Development 43(1), 26-37 (https://doi.org/10.1002/pad.1987);

Sintomer, Y., Herzberg, C. and Röcke, A. (2008). Participatory Budgeting in Europe: Potentials and Challenges. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 32(1), 164-178 (https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2427.2008.00777.x);

Tiberghien, G. (2018). Managing the Planning and Development of Authentic Eco-Cultural Tourism in Kazakhstan. Tourism Planning & Development 16(5), 494-513 (https://doi.org/10.1080/21568316.2018.1501733).

This post is also available in: Русский (Russian)