Astana, 23 October. Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov signed a resolution on 13 October approving the Comprehensive Plan for the Development of Unmanned Systems for 2026–2029, which provides for a single digital platform for drones, a traffic management system, at least two research centres and training of at least 1,000 specialists.
The document was published on 23 October.
The plan aims to create a legal framework, infrastructure and incentives for unmanned systems and integrate them into the economy. The document says the sector is currently developing in a fragmented way, and regulation and the opacity of certain procedures are holding back the market and domestic production. The plan provides for compulsory liability insurance for drone owners, cybersecurity and encryption requirements for control channels, plans for drone ports, vertiports and charging points, and offtake contracts — agreements on future purchases of drones from domestic producers, including under the state defence order, public procurement and purchases by subsoil users.
A separate item is the introduction of UTM (unmanned traffic management), a system through which drones will be registered and routes approved. Specialists will be trained as operators, design engineers, embedded software developers, and UTM, cybersecurity and maintenance specialists. The responsible agencies will report to the Ministry of AI and Digital Development twice a year.
What it means: Kazakhstan now has a document meant to turn a fragmented drone market into an industry with rules, infrastructure and guaranteed demand from the state and national companies.
Who benefits: Domestic drone makers, which get offtake contracts and priority digital-sector status; Astana Hub and universities, which join the market; farmers, logistics firms and rescuers, who get new tools. Drone owners will face compulsory insurance and registration.
Background: The same day the Security Council approved a military reform plan that provides for a separate branch of the armed forces, the Unmanned Forces.
List of sources used: Kazinform, Zakon.kz, Kursiv, VB.kg
Artificial intelligence was used in preparing this material.
