COVID-19: Kazakhstan Softens But Prolongs Restrictions

The global death toll from the coronavirus is more than 206,000 with nearly 3 million infections confirmed, causing mass disruptions as governments continue to try to slow the spread of the new respiratory illness.

Here’s a roundup of COVID-19 developments in RFE/RL’s broadcast regions.

Kazakhstan

NUR-SULTAN — Kazakhstan will start easing some restrictions imposed on March 16 to slow down the spread of the coronavirus even as it extends a countrywide state of emergency.

President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev said on April 27 that flights between Nur-Sultan, the capital, and the Central Asian nation’s largest city, Almaty, will resume operations on May 1, while the state of emergency that was due to be lifted on April 30 will be prolonged until May 11.

Kazakh health authorities said that the number of registered coronavirus cases in the country was 2,780, including 25 deaths, the highest official COVID-19 death toll in the region.

Uzbekistan

In Uzbekistan, Inspector General Nurmat Otabekov said on April 27 that the number of coronavirus cases in the country had reached 1,887, including eight deaths.

Over the weekend the Uzbek government allowed some retailers and other businesses to reopen after being closed for weeks due to the pandemic.

Among those allowed to resume operations were retailers of construction materials, car parts, seeds and seedlings, as well as services such as dry cleaners, insurers, notaries, and those servicing construction and agricultural machinery.

Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan

In Kyrgyzstan, Deputy Health Minister Nurbolot Usonov said on April 27 that 695 coronavirus cases had been recorded in the country, including eight deaths.

In Tajikistan, where not a single coronavirus case had been officially reported as of April 27, all public events were suspended and kindergartens, schools, and colleges were closed until May 10 to prevent the “spread of infectious diseases.”

While the Tajik government refuses to admit to any cases, the country reportedly has seen a suspicious increase recently in the number of deaths being attributed by government health officials to pneumonia.

Tajikistan and Turkmenistan are two Central Asian countries where no coronavirus cases have been reported, but experts are skeptical given the lack of transparency within their governments and a lack of independent media.

Turkmenistan marked national Horse Day on April 26, an annual holiday particularly loved by authoritarian President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.

The country continues to host crowded festivities, sports competitions, and horse races despite the coronavirus pandemic.

With reporting by RFE/RL’s Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, and Uzbek services​