Kazakhstan’s Nazarbayev University, where I had the privilege of serving as President, was founded as a break from the country’s Soviet past.
Launched in 2011, it was built as the first ever, Western-style higher education institution in a country that had only hosted Russian-style educational institutions.
Western governments saw the university as a forerunner for Kazakhstan’s economic development as well as its first steps towards being a liberal country.
It was founded on liberal academic values: free speech, independence from the government, and freedom to follow wherever its academic research took it. The vision was to create an internationally recognised institution that could educate the next generation of talent and undertake research to help advance the economy.
So, it is with a very heavy heart that I write that the last decade of work and progress building up the institution is now coming under fire.
To understand why Nazarbayev University is at serious threat, it helps to first give a little background on how NU was built. When the university was launched, it was protected by its own law, the NU law.
We could develop our own policies and procedures – from our academic and admission standards to our recruitment, HR and finances. In short, we did not have to report to the ministry of education and the government. We were given the freedom to set our own course.
Of course, with privileges came responsibilities. We had the moral obligation to build a strong and transparent system with clear accountabilities. Integrity – academic, professional, and personal – was a core value, as were merit, inclusiveness, and reach for excellence.
At the time, we also recognised that the best way to bring academic excellence to Kazakhstan was to partner with globally recognised universities, who could provide support and advice to develop a greenfield higher education institution.
Each academic department, or School, partnered with an international institution. For example, our Graduate School of Business partnered with Duke University in the US, our School of Medicine partnered with the American University of Pittsburgh, and our Graduate School of Education partnered with Cambridge University in the UK as well as Penn University in the US .
These institutions were not just lending their names to NU. The relationship was much deeper than that. They helped us attract international faculty members, helped us develop the syllabus, advised on the facilities we needed and much else besides. We worked alongside each other in the trenches to develop this new university.
This strategy, with the hard work of faculty and staff, delivered results.
One of our proudest successes was the fact the university recently debuted in the Times Higher Education World University Ranking in the top 30 per cent bracket, as a top 600 institution globally. We also ranked first for higher education institutions in Central Asia and in the top group among emerging markets institutions – and had ambitions to globally place in the top 20 per cent of universities by 2030.
We attracted some of the world’s top leaders to the university, including then-UK PM David Cameron, Tony Blair, former US Secretary of State John Kerry, and leaders of institutions like the IMF and World Bank.
Now, the university is being picked apart at the seams and could soon collapse in on itself.
Firstly, the university’s financial independence is being undermined. As part of the wider strategy, when we first started, we pursued innovative alternative funding models. Much like leading international universities in the US and UK, we launched our own endowment to build capital reserves to safeguard the future of the university that local and international benefactors could support through donations.
We also set up an investment arm to invest in new technologies and businesses to provide us with a long-term income source independent from the government. This followed the model of investment arms from other international universities, like MIT and Harvard. As one stand-out case in point, upon government request we invested and turned around banks that were going bankrupt. We consolidated these banks, digitalised them, and succeeded in making them profitable.
As a result of our investment decisions, our US-based endowment became the owner of Jusan Bank, which was valued at $1.5 billion – and was even eyeing up an IPO in London to expand the bank’s reach. If this IPO had gone ahead, this would have provided the university and our affiliated secondary school system with funding for many generations. Sadly, it did not proceed and ended up in the hands of others who are only offering minor payments to the university.
Rather than being financially independent, the university is back to the government for financial support.
Secondly, the last year has seen a weakening of international oversight. When we first established the university, we felt it was important to appoint leading international figures to the Board to provide an important check and balance on the institution and give us credibility in the international community.
This plan is unravelling before our eyes. In June 2022, there were 14 members on the Board of Trustees, with seven of them being international members. Today, there are just nine members on the Board, and just four of them are international members, including myself. Over the last 18 months, we have lost figures such as Frederick Starr, Dennis de Tray, Stavros Yiannouka, and David Merkel. I’m sure there are more to follow.
At the same time, the university has come under government-aligned figures at senior university level. This is a forerunner of closer ties between NU and Russia as the university shifts direction.
This is not just idle speculation: according to reports from Russia’s press agency, Russian universities are on an expansion drive in Kazakhstan. More joint scientific and educational projects, student exchange programmes and internships are being rolled out. It seems the Kazakh government would prefer to promote Russia’s higher-education ecosystem, rather than develop its own institutions.
Unsurprisingly, the intentional sabotage of the university has created a chilling effect across campus. Academics, students, and administrators are seeing these changes take place in slow motion: the erosion of international oversight, the dilution of financial independence, and the appointment of government-aligned administrators.
In this environment, nothing needs to be said. It is all understood: don’t speak and continue dancing to our tune, otherwise your future at the university and your career are at risk. This is the traditional Soviet way. That’s why I have felt the need to speak publicly.
Defenders of liberal values should also speak out – this includes the university’s original international partners, like Cambridge and Penn, as well as the figures who visited the university in its early days.
At the time, we were all proud to stand alongside each other, building something new and fresh. We made allies around the world. We were joined by a commitment to doing things differently.
I say to these people: you have old friends in Kazakhstan who still consider you firm allies. Please lend your voice to our fight – NU’s international partners need to protect the institution they helped found.
If they wait any longer, there will be nothing left to save.
Shigeo Katsu is the founding president of Nazarbayev University. He stepped down from the position last year.
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