A memorandum to create the SHYMKENT IT CITY innovation cluster was signed at the Digital Qazaqstan forum held on March, 27 in Shymkent. This marks the first full-fledged IT city in the history of Kazakhstan not just a residential complex, but an entire ecosystem for IT professionals, entrepreneurs, and artificial intelligence developers. In this article El.kz explores how this project is set to become a powerful hub for technological growth across all of Central Asia.
What is SHYMKENT IT CITY?
According to the project’s initiators, the cluster will combine residential and business infrastructure in one location. It will feature:
At its core is the "Smart City" concept, where digital solutions are integrated into the daily lives of citizens. The project involves creating a unified management system for city infrastructure: from AI-powered video surveillance to environmental monitoring, smart meters, and a centralized contact center for residents. According to the roadmap, Shymkent plans to implement 13 pilot IT solutions, including drone infrastructure, a GovTech platform, medical AI services, and intelligent road quality control.
Innovations
Drones are expected to play a key role in the smart city environment, providing support for road repairs, waste collection, as well as identify illegal construction and unauthorized landfills. These technologies allow municipal services to reduce response times and make city management more accurate.
IT City in Shymkent is about more than just services; it’s about a new urban environment. As part of the Shymkent City district development, a new business and residential center is being formed, featuring a business cluster, educational facilities, cultural spaces, and a massive 47-hectare central park. The project is creating a new digital core for the city, where IT infrastructure is integrated at the urban planning stage.
Safety and quality of life are crucial components. Intelligent video surveillance systems, environmental sensors, and AI solutions for medicine are designed to help the city respond faster to emergencies, track air quality, and optimize municipal operations. For residents, this means more convenient city services, less bureaucracy, and more transparent communication with the Akimat (city administration) via a unified service center.
Where and When Will It Be Built?
Construction will begin in the Karatau district of Shymkent. The first stage will cover an area of approximately 1 hectare, with plans to expand the cluster to 6–10 hectares in the future.
The timeline:
Who is Behind the Project?
The initiative is being led by a venture investor Bakhyt Niyazov (shareholder of MOST Holding and founder of Justart VC Studio). MOST Holding (represented by Pavel Koktyshev) will oversee the technological and educational content. The local strategic partner is entrepreneur and public figure Yelikbay Tokbergenov, who will ensure the project’s integration into regional infrastructure and manage relations with government authorities.
Potential Risks
Despite its promise, IT City faces potential challenges. First is the issue of cost and long-term ROI. While logical for a growing metropolis, such systems require not only massive initial investments but also ongoing expenses for maintenance, updates, and cybersecurity.
The second is privacy and digital control. The more cameras, sensors, drones, and data analysis systems a city has, the more pressing the questions become: Who owns this data? How long is it stored? Where is the line between safety and total surveillance? This could become a major point of public debate, especially regarding AI-driven video analytics. Global "Smart City" experiences show that data leaks and excessive monitoring are among the most common grievances against such projects.
Another challenge is the potential for digital inequality between districts. While the Shymkent City district is developing as a modern polycentric core, there is a risk that advanced services will reach new business clusters much faster than older neighborhoods with complex infrastructure. This could widen the gap in the quality of the urban environment rather than bridge it. Finally, there is the question of the readiness of city services themselves. Even the best technology fails without trained specialists, transparent regulations, and rapid response from the Akimat. If digital solutions remain at the pilot or presentation level, residents may not feel the promised effects in their daily lives.
Why Kazakhstan Needs This
Shymkent has long demonstrated high entrepreneurial potential and an active youth population. The new IT city will help:
IT City in Shymkent is an attempt to demonstrate how digitalization can become part of a city’s new identity. A southern megacity traditionally associated with trade, logistics, and a warm climate is now firmly establishing itself on the urban-tech and smart infrastructure agenda. The project fits naturally into the national strategy for digitalization and Smart City development, but goes a step further by creating a specialized ecosystem dedicated specifically to the IT industry.