Eight new schools to open in Almaty by September

Almaty will open eight new schools and complete construction of three annexes to existing educational institutions before the start of the new academic year. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.

This will create 12,200 student places, the city administration reported. Measures to reduce the shortage of school places were discussed at a meeting chaired by Almaty Mayor Darkhan Satybaldy.

At the end of the 2025-2026 academic year, 357,225 children studied in 360 schools in the city. The current deficit is 29,735 student places. The problem is most acute in the Auezov, Alatau and Bostandyk districts.

The administration attributes the increased burden to the growing number of school-age children and internal migration. Over the past academic year, 17,847 students transferred to Almaty schools from other regions of Kazakhstan, almost half of them from the Almaty region.

Before the start of the school year, the city plans to open seven schools built under the national project "Keleshek mektepteri" and one more school built from the local budget. At the same time, construction of three annexes to existing schools will be completed.

The meeting also discussed the development of preschool education. Currently, 1,098 kindergartens operate in Almaty, attended by more than 88,000 children.

Since the beginning of 2026, 33 preschool institutions with almost 3,000 places have been opened in the city. By the end of the year, another 23 kindergartens are planned to be commissioned. According to the administration's calculations, this will increase preschool education coverage to 96.6% and reduce the queue to 2,000 children.

Following the meeting, Satybaldy instructed to ensure timely commissioning of new educational facilities, strengthen control over project implementation, and take additional measures to gradually reduce the deficit of student places in the fastest-growing districts of Almaty.

Earlier, the Almaty administration reported that free clubs and circles for schoolchildren and teenagers have started working in city libraries. The classes are designed for the summer period and are aimed at learning new skills and communicating with peers.