International Center for Scientific and Cultural Heritage Studies Opens in Almaty

On September 12, 2025, the official opening ceremony of the International Center for Scientific and Cultural Heritage Studies was held in Almaty. The main goal of the new center is to implement scientific projects aimed at preserving, researching, and widely promoting national and global cultural heritage.

The center was established on the basis of materials collected by Associate Professor of the Department of Religious Studies and Cultural Studies, PhD Azamat Shutbaevich Zhamashev, during international research trips, studies conducted in libraries and museums with manuscript collections, as well as research carried out in significant historical and cultural centers.

The event was attended by the Dean of the Academy of Islamic Studies of the University of Malaya (APIUM, Malaysia), editors of academic journals established by the university’s departments, faculty members of the Department of Islamic History, Civilization and Education, as well as the Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy and Political Science of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences, Associate Professor Bekzhan Berikbayuly Meirbayev; Head of the Department of Religious Studies and Cultural Studies, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor Aynur Durbelenkyzy Kurmanaliyeva; faculty members, and Head of the Department of Islamic Studies of the Egyptian University of Islamic Culture Nur-Mubarak, PhD Nurlan Sailauly Anarbayev.

Within the framework of the Center’s activities, joint research projects of domestic and international scholars in the fields of cultural studies, Islamic studies, and religious studies will be carried out. In addition, international scientific conferences, exhibitions, and cultural exchange programs will be organized, and active support will be provided for scholars’ research work.

The opening of the new scientific and cultural center marks an important step in strengthening Kazakhstan’s ties with the global academic community and in advancing the preservation and development of cultural heritage.

At the end of the event, a memorandum of cooperation was signed with the Department of Religious Studies and Cultural Studies of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, under which the center will serve as one of the department’s research bases. The memorandum was initiated by the Head of the Department, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor Aynur Durbelenkyzy Kurmanaliyeva.