Abstract

The paper examines the extent to which the amendments introduced to Article 6(3) of the Constitution of Kazakhstan through the national referendum of June 8, 2022, and subsequently replicated in Article 8(3) of the new Constitution of March 15, 2026, reflect the realities of ownership and governance of natural and energy resources in the country. The constitutional provision that existed during the Nazarbayev era, stating that ‘natural resources are in state ownership’, was, during the presidency of Tokayev, replaced with the formulation that ‘natural resources belong to the people.’

The sovereignty of the people over natural resources is particularly important for a resource-supplying country such as Kazakhstan. Overall, the notion that natural resources belong to the people is consistent with Article 1 of the ICCPR and the ICESCR, which recognize the collective right of peoples to freely dispose of their natural wealth and stipulate that they shall not be deprived of their means and subsistence.

This paper analyzes the laws, government actions, and policies adopted following the introduction of amendments to Article 6(3) of the Constitution in order to assess whether this shift signifies a substantive transformation in resource governance or whether it remains largely declaratory and symbolic. Based on the analysis of policies concerning natural and energy resources in contemporary Kazakhstan, as well as an examination of the constitutions of the Soviet Union, which promoted an ideology and economic system based on the people’s ownership, the paper argues that these constitutional amendments are largely populist. They were adopted to gain political recognition and public support, while shaping public expectations of a better life. Furthermore, it argues that the powers of ministries have been narrowed and the management of natural resources has increasingly been transferred to the private sector.