Yuliya Yakupbayeva: The SDGs need to be explained in clear and accessible language

On August 12, 2026, Astana hosted the roundtable “Civil Society and the SDGs: Accelerating Action Towards 2030,” bringing together representatives of government agencies, the United Nations, business, the expert community, and non-governmental organizations.

Welcoming remarks were delivered by Yevgeniy Kochetov, Vice Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Arman Kassenov, Vice Minister of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Sarango Radnaaragchaa, UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan; Birzhan Batkeyev, Chairman of the Management Board of the Economic Research Institute JSC; and Yuliya Yakupbayeva, Chair of the Sustainable Development Council at the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs and Partner at GPI Group.

In her remarks, Yuliya Yakupbayeva noted that ten years have passed since the adoption of the SDGs, yet many people and some businesses still do not fully understand what they mean in practice:

“The Sustainable Development Goals are not about reports. They are about clean water, a safe environment for children, sports and pedestrian infrastructure, reducing plastic waste, and caring for employees. The challenges we address through the SDGs are ultimately about the quality of life of ordinary people and the quality of the economy.”

For business, there is a very simple rule: if a solution cannot be explained to an ordinary person in one minute, it will be very difficult to scale.

The same is probably true of the Sustainable Development Goals.

When we talk about reducing plastic waste, people and business owners should understand what this means specifically for their courtyard, school, or store.

When we talk about responsible consumption, it is important to show which simple everyday habits can genuinely make a difference.

When we talk about water, we need to explain why saving water today contributes to the country’s sustainable development tomorrow.

Speaking about priorities for the next four years, Yuliya Yakupbayeva emphasized that greater attention should be given to making the results of this work clearer, more visible, and more meaningful to the public.

As one of the ideas proposed for discussion at the roundtable, Yuliya Yakupbayeva suggested launching a series of media and social media programs in Kazakh and Russian featuring real-life sustainable development cases from businesses and regions:

“We are ready to contribute to this work and hope that representatives of NGOs will also take part, including by helping adapt the material for different groups of the population. After all, it is from small and understandable solutions that major change eventually grows,” Yuliya Yakupbayeva concluded.

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The roundtable also featured representatives of the United Nations, the Economic Research Institute JSC, the Department for Social Sector Development, Law Enforcement and Special Agencies, the Department of International Cooperation and Sustainable Development of the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Civil Alliance of Kazakhstan, the Association for Civil Society Development, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, the Foundation for Development of Parliamentarism in Kazakhstan, the Public Council of Almaty, the NGO ZAMAN ZHARGYSY, EcoNetwork LLP, the Kameda Public Foundation, and the Karaganda Regional Environmental Center ECOCENTER.

Participants discussed Kazakhstan’s progress towards achieving the SDGs, the role of civil society, partnership development, access to socially significant information, SDG localization, and practical initiatives at the regional level.