Kanat Makhanov

Kanat Makhanov

Senior Research fellow

Kanat Makhanov is a research fellow at the Eurasian Institute of the International H.A Yassawi Kazakh-Turkish University. He holds a BA in Business Economics from the KIMEP University from 2012. In 2014 he earned his Masters degree in Economics from the University of Vigo (Spain), completing his thesis on “Industrial Specialization in autonomous regions of Spain and Kazakhstan”. His main research interests are Spatial Economics, Economic Geography, Regional Economics, Human and Economic Geography.

Staff's Publications


February 19, 2021

The Turkic Side of Ukraine’s Political Identity: The Role of Crimean Conflict in Ukraine’s Nation-Building

Since the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian war in February 2014, the two countries have lived in a constant confrontation mode. It can be said that the active phase of the conflict was a continuation of the previous long-lasting controversies regarding the underlying principles of the development models of the two […]
January 17, 2021

Horizons of Oil Era in Light of the COVID-19 Crisis

One of the largest economic shocks that have marked 2020 was the tremendous decline of oil prices that broke the minimums of 2016 and reached the levels of 2003 [Markets.businessinsider.com, 2020]. In 2020, the estimated oil demand dropped by unprecedented 9.7% compared to 2019 [OPEC, 2020]. Strict quarantine measures, as […]
January 9, 2021

Reconciling Western Aspirations and Eastern Sympathies: The Case of Moldova and Gagauzia

On November 15, 2020, Moldova held the second round of its fourth regular presidential election, on which the incumbent President Igor Dodon ran against his main rival Maia Sandu, who represented the pro-European electorate of Moldova. The victory of Maia Sandu over President Igor Dodon, who took anti-European and pro-Russian […]
December 10, 2020

Presidential Election in Moldova: A New Turn to the West

The leader of the Action and Solidarity Party of Moldova Maia Sandu has in the second round of presidential election defeating the incumbent president Igor Dodon, who ran as an independent candidate. Eight candidates representing practically all political parties of Moldova took part in the first round of the election. […]
December 10, 2020

Convergence or Divergence: COVID-19 Crisis as Crossroad for Central Asia

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a tremendous global economic shock jeopardizing the development and economic growth accumulated in recent years. According to the latest World Bank’s economic prospects, the world is about to face a 5.2% of global GDP decline in 2020, which would be the most severe recession since […]
November 9, 2020

Urban Demographics in Kazakhstan and Economic Significance of Large Cities

Over the last several years Kazakhstan has been prioritizing the urbanization of the population and enlargement of the major urban centers of the country. The significance of cities with population over one million people was emphasized by the first President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev at the jubilee forum of the […]
November 5, 2020

Landlocked Developing Countries and Covid-19 Pandemic

In January 2020, Kazakhstan took the chairmanship in the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) group of landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) for 2020-2021 [KazTAG, 2020]. This group within the UNCTAD is designed to promote the interests of 32 developing landlocked states because being a landlocked country is considered to […]
November 5, 2020

Natural Disasters in China and Shift in the Global Grain Market

The year 2020 has been a tough year for China. In addition to the COVID-19 virus that first emerged in Wuhan, Hubei province, causing a global pandemic, China was hit by the most devastating flood since 1998 that affected many major cities and provinces in the Yangtze River valley and […]
October 25, 2020

Highlights of the Parliamentary Elections in Mongolia of 2020

On 24 June 2020 Mongolia held parliamentary elections, on which the ruling Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) was set to remain in power for another four-year term. The MPP, which is considered to be as a center-leftist party, won in a landslide securing 62 out of the 76 seats in the […]
October 25, 2020

A Brief Overview on the Preliminary Results of the Census of Belarus Of 2019

In 2019, Belarus held its third regular population census since its independence. The purpose of the census was to obtain statistical information on the population of Belarus that is valuable for updating the demographic data, forecasting, conducting research, policy-making and planning the country’s socio-economic development [Belstat.gov.by, 2020]. The process of […]