Time zone change in Kazakhstan: research results announced

Tengrinews.kz – The government of Kazakhstan has announced the results of a study on the country's unified time zone.
According to the study, the time zone change does not have negative consequences for the daily lives of Kazakhstanis.

"A monitoring of the practical impact of the time zone on public health, energy consumption, and labor productivity was conducted with the involvement of experts and research institutes. A comprehensive approach was applied, including data analysis, survey results, and a comparison of indicators before and after the time zone change," said Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliyev at a government meeting.

According to him, the study results indicate no negative impact of the time zone change on key aspects of public life.

"The monitoring showed no negative effects from the decision to introduce a unified time zone," added Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov and instructed to organize the necessary work in coordination with the Mazhilis.

As a reminder, on March 1, 2024, a unified time was established across Kazakhstan. In Astana, Almaty, Shymkent, and the regions of Akmola, Almaty, Zhambyl, Karaganda, Kostanay, Pavlodar, North Kazakhstan, Turkestan, East Kazakhstan, as well as the Abai, Zhetysu, and Ulytau regions, clocks were set back by one hour. As a result, the entire country moved to the UTC+5 time zone.
In April, Kazakhstanis launched a petition to cancel the time change, gathering 50,000 signatures. In August, the Ministry of Trade and Integration announced its final decision on the time zone petition, rejecting the request.