Kazakhstan’s Oil-Rich West Is Struggling To Create Jobs
AI-generated illustration
Kazakhstan’s labor market is slowly improving, but the pace varies sharply by region, Orda.kz reports, citing Energyprom.kz analysts.
Over the past 15 years, the national unemployment rate has fallen from 5.5% to 4.5%, according to data for the first quarter of 2026. In cities, the rate dropped from 5.9% to 4.5%, while in rural areas it declined from 5.1% to 4.6%.
Women still face worse labor market conditions than men. At the beginning of 2026, unemployment among women stood at 5%, compared with 4% among men. Fifteen years ago, the gap was wider — 6.3% versus 4.7% — but the imbalance has not disappeared.
The problem is most acute in Mangistau Region, one of Kazakhstan’s key oil-producing areas. The overall unemployment rate there is 5%, already above the national average. But the headline figure hides a striking gender gap: unemployment among men is 2%, while among women it reaches 8.4%. This is the widest gap of any region in Kazakhstan. For comparison, the national female unemployment rate is 5%.
Of the region’s 20,000 unemployed residents, almost half — about 10,000 people — are out of work because of household duties or family circumstances. Another 2,700 said they could not find a job, while nearly 3,600 lost work because of layoffs or company closures.
The vacancy market reflects the same problem. In June 2026, only 658 job postings were listed on the Enbek portal in Mangistau Region — 1.2% of the national total. Only Kyzylorda Region had fewer. By comparison, Karaganda Region had 2,800 vacancies, while East Kazakhstan Region had 2,600.
The structure of available jobs is also revealing. Most vacancies were in education and medicine, while the oil and gas sector — the backbone of the regional economy — offered only 20 positions. IT had just six.
HeadHunter data show a similar picture. In the first quarter of 2026, Aktau accounted for 1.5% of all vacancies in Kazakhstan, and the number of postings there fell by another 10.9% year-on-year. Almaty, by contrast, accounted for 40% of job offers, while Astana had almost 23%.
At the same time, Mangistau remains one of Kazakhstan’s richest regions and one of the country’s main sources of oil rent.
Original author: Ilya Astakhov
Read also:
Latest news
- Major Blackout Hits Much of Central Asia
- “He Was Not Ready”: Japarov Drops Plan to Back Tashiev and Will Seek Re-Election
- Domestic Violence Center Lawyer Convicted of Assaulting His Wife
- South Korea Opens Legal Factory and Cleaning Jobs to Kazakhstanis
- Almaty Petition Calls for Halt to Covering Open Irrigation Channels
- Rare Vulture Tagged in Kazakhstan to Track Its Migration
- Kazakhstan’s First 50 MW Data Center to Launch in June 2027
- KNB Service Dog Returns to Auction With Minimum Price of About 20 Cents
- Kazakhtelecom Finds No Internal Fault as Telegram Problems Continue
- Telegram Disruptions Reported Across Kazakhstan
- Employee Numbers Rise as Self-Employment Declines in Kazakhstan
- Kazakhstan’s Maritime Companies Earn More From Vessel Charters Than Shipping
- Digital Ministry Comments on Alleged Leak of 15 Million Kazakhstanis’ Data
- German Couple Dies in Akmola Region Highway Crash
- State Agencies to Receive Top Score When Citizens Leave No Feedback
- Kazakhmys Copper Seeks KASE Delisting After Major Dividend Payout
- Ukraine Stops Attacks on Tankers Carrying Kazakh Oil After U.S. Pressure
- Possible Leak of 15 Million Kazakhstanis’ Data Under Investigation
- Kazakhstan Opens Criminal Case Against Journalist Over Report on Russia’s War Recruits
- LRT in Almaty Could Launch by the End of 2027
