The Almaty Air Initiative Foundation and the Nurlan Smagulov Foundation have signed an agreement to finance the development of an air quality monitoring system in Almaty.

Under the agreement, the Nurlan Smagulov Foundation allocated more than 148 million tenge for the procurement and installation of 200 air-quality monitoring sensors.

Project Objectives:

– Provide objective assessments of the city’s environmental situation, including critical pollution episodes;

– Increase public awareness of air-quality conditions;

– Develop and implement effective, data-driven response measures;

– Evaluate the effectiveness of environmental actions taken.

Overall, the project is aimed at improving the quality of life for Almaty residents.

Arsen Tomsky, Founder of the Air Initiative Foundation, CEO and Founder of inDrive:

“The right to clean air begins with access to information about its quality.

Change is impossible without understanding the current situation — and that’s why we’re joining forces.

We believe that such projects can transform Almaty into a city where people live longer, healthier, and happier lives.”

The sensors installed across Almaty measure PM2.5, PM1, PM0.3, and PM10 particulate matter levels.

Thirty of these sensors also detect nitrogen dioxide, sulfur oxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, and other hazardous pollutants.

Today, these devices are distributed throughout the city, making Almaty one of the world leaders in air-monitoring network density.

Nurlan Smagulov, Founder of the Foundation and Astana Group:

“Improving Almaty’s air quality is a serious challenge for all of us — the residents of this megacity — and it is our shared responsibility.

Having full and accurate information about air conditions will enable the city to make informed, evidence-based decisions.

We are already implementing projects aimed at improving the ecological situation.

For instance, Astana Motors represents international automotive brands offering New Energy Vehicles (NEV) in Kazakhstan and is developing charging infrastructure for eco-friendly transport.”

In 2026, the Almaty Akimat plans to install around 200 additional sensors, bringing the city’s total to 400 devices.

This will allow Almaty to rank among global leaders in air monitoring density — alongside San Francisco, Chicago, and London.

For the first time, such sensors will also be installed in schools in the Ile, Talgar, and Karasai districts of the Almaty region.

During the first three months, the data collected by the new network will be available exclusively through the Mycar.kz mobile application.

This period is required for technical testing and equipment calibration.

After the testing phase, the information will become open and accessible to all Almaty residents and will be available in real time on the newly launched AAI Dashboard platform: https://dashboard.air.org.kz/ 

* The ranking is calculated based on the number of sensors per 100,000 city residents.