Kazakhstan has a presidential democracy as a form of government. The constitutional powers are exercised by legislative, executive and judicial branches.
The executive branch consists of the President and Council of Ministers. The president is the head of state and directly elected for a term of five years. The parliament of Kazakhstan is the legislative branch which is headed by the prime minister. The parliament is bicameral and consists of a Senate and Majilis or House of Representatives. The senate is composed of deputies, which are elected for a term of six years. Majilis includes 107 members, of which 98 are directly elected from political parties and nine are elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan.
The government of Kazakhstan is accountable to the President and Parliament.
(Source: Government of Kazakhstan, Government of Kazakhstan)
Regulatory Environment in Kazakhstan

(Source:Heritage.org)
The country’s economic freedom score is 62.1, making its economy the 78th freest in the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom. Kazakhstan was placed at 11th out of 41 regional countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Corruption perception
Kazakhstan is ranked 105th with a score of 2.9 on Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2010. The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is a survey to measure the perceived level of corruption across countries worldwide.
(Source: transparency.org)
Freedom of Information
The media in Kazakhstan is restricted. It is not allowed to comment, criticise government, the President and officials.
(Source: BBC)
Kazakhstan was ranked 162nd with a score of 68.50 on the world Press Freedom Index 2010.
(Source: rsf.org)
The major news papers in Kazakhstan include:
- Kazakhstanskaya Pravda
- Yegemen Qazaqstan
- Ekspress-K
- Liter
- Karavan
(Source: BBC)
Judicial system
The judicial system in Kazakhstan includes following courts:
- Supreme Courts
- Local Courts
The Supreme Court is the highest authority in judicial matters. The Chairperson of the Supreme Court and judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the Senate based on recommendations of the country’s Highest Judicial Council.
The chairperson heads the Highest Judicial Council, which includes chairperson of the Constitutional Council, the chairperson of the Supreme Court, Procurator General, Minister of Justice, deputies of the Senate, judges and various others appointed by the President.
(Source: Government of Kazakhstan)