Evolution of the Astana EXPO-2017
The achievements of Astana EXPO-2017 are a good example of a successful adaptation to the requirements of Kazakhstan’s economy.
The management of JSC “National company “Astana EXPO-2017” once again presents an updated post-exhibition complex, with a large number of imaginative design solutions on an impressive scale.
Despite the change in its use, the exhibition site remains, as before, a centre for new achievements. It is no secret that the construction of the EXPO-2017 facilities in Astana was timed so that they could be used to hold a specialist international exhibition. But they were not designed solely to serve as exhibition spaces. Right from the beginning it was planned that the exhibition complex would then become a new tourism and financial centre for the capital city. “Anchor” investment projects such as Astana EXPO-2017 help promote the overall development of cities: they create a large number of jobs, generate investment, give an impetus to the development of the transport infrastructure in surrounding regions and help to lay the basis for a multi-centred society.
Territory of the future
Four major projects initiated by the President of Kazakhstan are now being developed and supported at the EXPO complex. They all have one thing in common: an emphasis on innovation.
It is planned that the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) will become a leading centre for the provision of financial services in the Eurasian region, a catalyst for the attraction of foreign investment, and also a financial hub that will unite the Kazakh markets with those of Europe and Asia. In the very near future the AIFC building will display the logos of leading global companies. Companies coming here will be offered special, and, to say the least, very tempting, conditions and opportunities: those foreign investors who become residents and participants in the financial centre, and who invest in priority sectors of the Kazakh economy, will benefit from the very highest international standards of protection, guaranteed by the AIFC’s International Arbitration Centre. The AIFC has another ambitious, but entirely realisable goal, to become one of the 50 leading international financial centres in the world within the next three years.
It has already earned Astana a new status as a “financial capital”. Readers will remember that, on November 14, in the Nur Alem Sphere, President Nursultan Nazarbayev launched trading on the financial centre’s stock exchange – the Astana International Exchange (AIX). The Exchange will provide new opportunities for major Kazakh and foreign companies to enter into multi-million dollar deals. The first national company to make an IPO on the AIFC exchange was Kazatomprom, a global leader in the uranium industry. As the President pointed out, if, in the past, we could only follow the listings on Wall Street over the television, now, on the Astana EXPO-2017 site, we are creating a high-tech stock exchange infrastructure, with a complete business cycle
Another one of the most technologically-advanced post-exhibition projects is the Astana Hub, an international IT technopark for startups: this is Kazakhstan’s version of the famous Silicon Valley, in the USA. Operating under the logo “Made in Kazakhstan”, the Astana Hub offers ideal conditions for the development of innovative technologies and startups. The Technopark is expected to become the nucleus, and driver, of Kazakhstan’s new ecosystem of innovation, and an internationally recognised hub for the development of IT businesses.
The IT University is another powerful tool which will help bring our country into the world of digital transformation. It is being established in partnership with leading technological universities such as Carnegie Mellon and the Singularity University. Innovative fast-track programmes will prepare highly-qualified specialists to work in Kazakhstan’s digital economy.
The International Centre for Green Technologies and Investment Projects will continue the Astana EXPO-2017’s ideological legacy. It will participate in the accelerated transition of Kazakhstan, and, later on, other countries in Central Asia, to a “green” economy, by implementing the results of scientific research and making use of advanced technologies in the field of renewable energy generation.
Territory of success
It may come as a surprise for some but the Astana EXPO-2017’s infrastructure has even more to offer! As well as promoting leading projects, the EXPO complex will become a site for the active and successful development of the country’s business market. The national company has announced that the 35,000-square metre EXPO Business Centre, constructed to the international quality standards for Class A office space, will soon be opened on the exhibition site. This new business centre includes a unique combination of innovative features, and offers ideal conditions for the smooth running of a business.
Many companies will appreciate the centre’s key advantages: its extremely high standards of comfort and its infrastructure – it is located very close to the Astana International Financial Centre, the Nur Alem Sphere and the EXPO Congress Centre.
Among the centre’s many other positive points are its excellent logistics: it is close to the capital’s administrative centre, the Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport, and the Nurly Zhol railway station, and the country’s largest shopping centre, Mega Silk Way, and the ultra-modern Hilton Astana hotel complex are a just a short walk away.
Kazakhstan’s largest Exhibition Centre will be opened in 2019: this will be a multi-function business arena for major national and international exhibitions, congresses and other important events. The centre will have a total area of 20,000 square metres and will have a number of multi-function pavilions and halls.
By taking part in exhibitions at the centre, companies will be in an ideal position to present their own achievements and products to foreign partners, sign contracts with them, find new customers and promote their own corporate image. The business centre’s design, and its state-of-the-art multimedia equipment mean that it will be able to host events of any size, and any level of complexity.
The EXPO Congress Centre, which was built in order to host major business and cultural events, is continuing to operate extremely successfully. As readers may remember, it was here that the opening and closing ceremonies of the Astana EXPO-2017 were held. The Congress centre’s convertible halls, which can easily accommodate up to 4500 people, are suitable for any event design concept and can be adapted to the individual style of the event.
The Nur Alem Sphere – EXPO 2017’s key attraction and main landmark, is the central building in the exhibition centre. This extraordinary structure, unique in the world, is a perfect sphere with a diameter of 80 meters. With its eight floors of highly advanced installations and themed laboratories, it continues to attract thousands of visitors from Kazakhstan and around the world.
The sphere hosts regular new exhibitions, including fascinating displays of new renewable energy technology, new-generation gaming equipment, prototypes for smart cities, and models demonstrating the latest developments in environmentally-friendly machine building.
With its wide range of exhibits, the Sphere is not only an entertaining place to visit, it also has an important role to play in our country, by promoting the development of education and public interest in science. Tens of thousands of visitors have already attended more than 100 open classes and activity sessions, as part of the Kids & Student Future Energy education programme.
The Nur Alem Sphere also has a large and comfortable auditorium, which is used for courses, master-classes, training events, lectures, seminars and other similar events. The Sphere’s sound and video projection systems create an ideal environment for fruitful work, creativity and communication, and the striking and inspiring atmosphere in one of the city’s most iconic locations means that every event held in the auditorium will be an unforgettable one.
A year older
The EXPO-2017 Complex is still a very popular leisure site for residents and visitors to the city. The complex’s conveniently-located facilities include a parking area, restaurants and cafes, a first-rate children’s play area, and – continuing the tradition established by EXPO-2017 – in the winter there is an ice park with a skating rink and illuminated New Year tree.
And now, a year after the end of the exhibition, new projects and facilities have opened and the EXPO-2017 territory has evolved into a comprehensive centre for business, promoting new breakthroughs in the nation’s economy, its culture and its scientific and technical progress. Astana EXPO-2017 is now one of the largest and most innovative contemporary clusters, uniting business, entertainment and exhibition projects in a single complex, with a harmonious architectural vision. Visiting the EXPO complex is like taking a trip to a mini city, where the iconic Nur Alem Sphere is just one of the many business, tourist and leisure facilities on offer.
For more information, please visit: https://expo2017astana.com
Contact Info:
Name: Azel Kussainova, Department of International Cooperation
Email: a.kussainova@expo2017astana.com
Phone: +77172938774
Organization: Astana EXPO-2017 National Company
Address: 53/2, Mangylik El street, oranganizers office,
Astana, 010000