KAZAKHSTAN - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY - BIOTECH AND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ASTANA 000615

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR OES/STC, SCA/RA, AND SCA/CEN

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TSPL EAGR KSCA PREL PGOV KZ
SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY - BIOTECH AND
AGRICULTURE

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Summary
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1. EST Officer's January 20 - February 19 TDY visit to Kazakhstan
provided a timely opportunity to discuss the Kazakhstani
government's Science and Technology (S&T) infrastructure,
particularly in light of continued negotiations on a bilateral
Science and Technology Agreement. This cable focuses on
biotechnology and agriculture and is one of a series of four cables
summarizing EST officer's meetings in Kazakhstan. End Summary.

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National Biotechnology Center
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2. EST officer met with Kasym Mukanov, Deputy Director of National
Biotechnology Center (NBC) in Astana. Mukanov stated the NBC
currently has 700 employees, 90 percent of whom are researchers and
scientists. The NBC focuses on three areas: biotechnology, avian
influenza and bio-chem security. He said that the NBC is currently
cooperating internationally with U.S. universities including Auburn,
Texas A&M, UC Davis, and Rutgers. The NBC is currently allocated $1
million to conduct international cooperation and this allotment
should grow in the future. The NBC has allotted $100,000 for
bilateral cooperation with each university. Mukanov stated that the
NBC also currently cooperates internationally with Japan, France,
Russia, and Israel. The three main aims of the NBC are competitive
research, training of personnel, and deepening international
cooperation. Mukanov said he would like to see more visiting
professors and lecturers in Kazakhstan. Currently the NBC receives
13 per year. The NBC will also build a new biotechnical campus 60
km outside of Astana. This center will have 27 state-of-the-art
laboratories and an onsite hotel for visiting researchers. The labs
will meet the international standards of security (BSC-2) and will
meet the GLP (Good Labs Practice) standard.


3. Mukanov stated that NBC's overall research focus includes
biotechnology for agriculture, veterinary medicine, medical
biotechnology, food processing and what was termed as
"bio-preservation," or cataloging bio-materials. Another NBC focus
is producing new strands of agricultural products that can be
sustained in the cold and harsh climate of Kazakhstan's Steppe. Thus
far the NBC has produced new strains of rice and wheat which are
currently in the production phases in Kazakhstan. Mukanov stated
these new strains were not Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO's)
but were instead created through "advanced cross-pollination
techniques focused on select trait isolation." Mukanov mentioned
that GMO's have not been accepted in Kazakhstan and he was unsure if
they would be. In the field of veterinary medicine, Mukanov stated
the NBC has created 26 new vaccines and 28 diagnosis medicines. He
also claimed the NBC has created a vaccine for avian influenza.
(Note: This claim was not confirmed. End Note.) The NBC's medical
biotechnology research is focused on treatments for cancer,
tuberculosis, and diabetes, as well as eye and heart disease. The
NBC has developed a strand of microorganism that can destroy oil in
soil or water. Mukanov said that the strand has been tested in an
area outside of Karaganda, Kazakhstan, after an oil leak had
occurred. This microorganism was used on three hectares of land and
was successful at cleaning up the spill. Other areas the NBC is
focusing on include food processing, dietary supplements and new
breeds of yeast. The NBC is also tasked with bio-resource
preservation. The NBC is in the process of collecting bio-organisms,
plants, and animals to be kept as part of a record. Mukanov was
very interested in potential future cooperation with additional U.S.
universities and welcomes cooperation with U.S. technical agencies.


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Center for Biological Research
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4. EST officer met with Amangeldy Sadanov, Director General of the
Center for Biological Research (CBR) in Almaty, as well as with the
directors of the CBR's subsidiary institutions. The CBR is
headquartered just outside Almaty. Sadanov stated that the CBR was
established in 2004 as a public-private partnership that reports to
the Ministry of Education and Science. The CBR consists of nine
institutes and two branch offices covering such topics as molecular
biology and chemistry, genetics, psychology, physiology of humans
and animals, microbiology, virology, zoology, botany, bio-control,
and pre-clinical testing. When asked about overlaps of subject areas
with the Ministry of Agriculture, Sadanov said that although they
may cover similar subject areas the research performed is different.
The CBR only works directly with the Ministry of Agriculture when
contracted to do so. Sadanov stated that the CBR employs 1500
researchers in total, of whom 97 are post-doctoral, 500 PhD's, and
the rest researchers.


5. For funding, Sadinov stated that each institution must apply to

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the CBR Committee to have its research proposals evaluated and
rated. This standard applies to applied research, as basic research
receives a continued base of funding. Another source of funding for
the institutions is through contracting work for other ministries
and private companies. With this method, an MOU can be signed at
any level of the CBR structure and still be valid within the CBR
structure. Sadinov claimed government funding for the CBR has been
increasing, though he was reluctant to discuss actual numbers.


6. Current international partners of the CBR include Russia,
Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Hungary, and
Turkey. The CBR plans to send researchers on a seven month study
tour to the United States sometime later this year. Sadanov stated
the CBR has been allocated $50 million annually for international
cooperative research and was granted an additional $50 million for
this year. Sadinov emphasized his support for international
cooperation and was hopeful a bilateral S&T agreement will lead to
greater cooperation with the U.S. on science and technology issues.



7. Institute directors asked EST officer for assistance on two
issues. One director understood that USDA had some money set aside
specifically for Kazakhstan and wanted to know the status, and
another director asked for assistance in finding a partner for a
project on "virus free potatoes." He claimed that the International
Science and Technology Center would provide his institution with
$400 million in funding if he could find an adequate American
partner for this research. EST officer stated he would relay both
messages directly to USDA.

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Kazakh Agro-technical University
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8. EST officer met with Aitbay Bulashev, President of the Kazakh
Agro-technical University; Bazarkhan Rustembayev, Vice-Rector for
Science; and Sara Kitaibekova, head of the university's
international relations department. The university is located in
Astana. The university currently has 6600 full time students.
Bulashev said that every agrotech center in Kazakhstan has at least
one graduate of his school. He also claimed that the university is
responsible for Kazakhstan's strength in agriculture. According to
Bulashev, production of solid wheat exports to Europe had been
growing steadily every year, thanks in part to the training of this
university. Other than agriculture, the university has 35 research
areas. Bulashev has set the goal to fully switch to the Western
academic model by 2011. He noted that his university has had strong
cooperation with a number of German universities. Through this
partnership, students studying in Germany and Kazakhstan are
eligible to receive a degree from both the German and Kazakhstani
institutions. Bulashev said that the Department of Agriculture has
made plans to move the university 60 km outside Astana, where it
will be part of a newly-established agro-innovation center.
Following the meeting with Bulashev, Kitaibekova showed EST officer
the university's labs. Kitaibekova stated that the university
invested heavily in equipment, but one problem is that the
researchers have had little or no training on it. Thus, in most labs
the new equipment sits idle and covered.

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KazakhAgroInnovations
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9. The meetings at Kazakh Agro-technical University led to a meeting
in Astana with Myrzageldy Abdraimov, Vice President of
KazAgroInnovations. Abdraimov stated that KazAgroInnovations(KAI)
manages all agriculture sciences in Kazakhstan. KAI manages 60
institutions and two research centers with a goal of
commercialization of agricultural research. Abdraimov believes that
Kazakhstan needs not only to borrow technologies from abroad but
also to adapt them to the local environment. He sees future
cooperation as a means to improve the training of researchers on new
equipment purchases. KAI's focus areas include biofuels, clean
production, waste management, environmental protection, and a gene
exchange program. Abdraimov also described ongoing cooperation with
the U.S. Department of Agriculture under which KEI sent 35
researchers to the United States to work with American counterparts.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Abdraimov arranged a brief
meeting for EST officer with the Minister of Agriculture, Berek
Ospanov. Ospanov strongly supports cooperation with the United
States and praised the S&T strength of the U.S.


10. EST officer met with Dr. Bayan Alimgaznova, head of the division
of Agriculture Science, Education and Innovation, Ministry of
Agriculture. Alimgaznova explained that her department is
responsible for setting a strategy for agro-science and education
development on a three-year basis. Alimgaznova stated that 15
percent of the Bolashak scholars enter into the agro-sciences and
that this program has greatly helped the agro-sciences in
Kazakhstan.

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Comment
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11. The agriculture sector is a major part of the Kazakhstani
economy and significant investment has been made in the agricultural
sciences as well as biotechnology. As one of the successor states
to the USSR, Kazakhstan inherited a number of bio-technological
researchers and centers which the Kazakhstanis hope to capitalize
on. When a bilateral S&T agreement is concluded, it would be highly
beneficial for USDA, NSF, EPA as well as any other agencies that
have significant interests in agro-biotechnology to consider working
with Kazakhstani scientists. End Comment.

ORDWAY