President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s decision to reform the Armed Forces has received positive support from 85.7% of participants in a public opinion poll, El.kz reports citing the Institute of Democracy.
The survey was conducted on September, 28–29 following a meeting between the Head of State and the leadership of the Ministry of Defence. During the meeting, the President instructed the Ministry to undergo a comprehensive review and to prepare a military reform plan within ten days.
According to the survey results, 85.2% of respondents fully or partially supported the decision to conduct a review of the Ministry of Defence. Participants were also asked to identify the changes they considered necessary in the armed forces.
The most frequently cited priority was the need to increase the transparency and accountability of the Ministry of Defence. This option was selected by 47.4% of survey participants.
The renewal of the command staff and enhancement of its professional competence were identified as necessary by 34.3% of respondents. Another commonly cited priority was strengthening anti-corruption efforts in the defence sector.
The safety of military personnel and improvements to their social conditions were mentioned by 25.3% of respondents. Participants also expressed support for the modernisation of weapons and military equipment.
The introduction of new technologies, including digital solutions, was considered necessary by 20.4% of respondents. Improving the level of combat training and the quality of military exercises was also among the proposed changes.
The survey was conducted online using the Computer-Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI) method. It involved 1,012 respondents aged 18 and over from all regions of Kazakhstan, as well as the cities of Astana, Almaty and Shymkent.
The organisers did not specify the margin of error or the sampling methodology. Accordingly, the results reflect the responses of the survey participants and do not provide a sufficiently reliable basis for drawing conclusions about the views of the population of Kazakhstan as a whole.
