MINEX Forum

Tag: corporate social responsibility

  • ERG Opens Pioneering Solar-Powered School in Kazakhstan as Part of KZT15 Billion Education Drive

    ERG Opens Pioneering Solar-Powered School in Kazakhstan as Part of KZT15 Billion Education Drive

    The KZT7.8 billion (£13.7 million) school, which can accommodate 1,200 students, is part of ERG’s “ERG mektep” (“ERG for Schools”) programme. This initiative has channelled over KZT15 billion into education in Kazakhstan in recent years.

    The new building, spanning over 19,590 square meters, is one of the largest constructed under the state-led Keleshek Mektepteri (“Schools of the Future”) initiative. It incorporates modern features focusing on ergonomics, inclusivity, and energy efficiency. The school also features advanced security systems integrated with artificial intelligence.

    Shukhrat Ibragimov, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of ERG, expressed pride in the project’s inclusion in the national initiative. He quoted Kanysh Satbayev, a prominent Kazakh scientist, stating, “The future belongs to young people. But in order to be prepared for this future, they need to be equipped with knowledge.”

    The school boasts 60 classrooms, four computer labs, a STEM laboratory, a robotics room, and language labs. It also includes hydroponic systems for biology and ecology studies and a media centre with a podcast studio. Digital assistants will assist teachers, providing tailored learning tasks for students.

    A key feature of the design is its focus on inclusivity, with accessible classrooms and special elevators to accommodate students with special educational needs. The Akim of the Kostanay Region, Mr Kumar Aksakalov, praised the collaboration between government and business, stating the school “meets all modern requirements” and will “become a solid foundation for fostering honesty, hard work, patriotism and civic responsibility among the younger generation.”

    In a joint programme with the Teach for Qazaqstan foundation, four specialist STEM teachers will join the new school to strengthen technical education. ERG has a history of supporting educational infrastructure in the country, having previously funded similar projects in the Pavlodar Region and modernisations in Aksu and Khromtau.

  • Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine and Kajaran community signed a memorandum of cooperation

    Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine and Kajaran community signed a memorandum of cooperation

    On July 13, 2023, the Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine and Kajaran community signed a memorandum of cooperation.

    Roman Khudoliy, President of the GeoProMining Group of Companies, CEO of ZCMC, and Manvel Paramazyan, head of the Kajaran community, stressed that there have always been close cooperative ties between the parties, and the memorandum will raise these relations to a new, institutional level.

    The memorandum provides for the development of strategic areas of cooperation in the fields of economy, culture, education and sports, social security, healthcare, as well as in urban planning.

    After the signing ceremony of the memorandum, ZCMC General Director Roman Khudoliy said: “Cooperation between our company and the Kajaran community can be considered an exemplary in terms of cooperation between the community and the company. We have reached such a level that we consider supporting social development projects not as a duty or as corporate social responsibility, but as an investment in the development of our company, because our success is ensured by our employees, and these are mainly residents of the Kajaran community. Today we are taking this cooperation to a strategic new level.”

    Mayor Manvel Paramazyan also welcomed the signing of the memorandum and stressed the ongoing close relationships between the enterprise and the community. “The role and significance of the Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine is undeniable in the history of the creation of the city of Kajaran and in the development of the community, from the day the city was founded to the present day, for more than seven decades. When we say Qajaran, we mean combine, and vice versa, when we say combine, we mean Qajaran. But this memorandum opened a new page in the recent history of Kajaran, reevaluating those decades and the great contribution and dedication of the leaders of the company from the beginning of history and all the heroes of this giant enterprise.”

    Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine CJSC signed memorandums in the field of social development also with the Syunik region and the Kapan community recently.