Implementation of Alternative Livelihood Program in Kostanay Oblast, Republic of Kazakhstan in autumn 2008

The experience and practice of developing ecotourism activities show that in order to involve the local community, first of all, it is necessary to get their representatives interested materially. Considering the situation with the Naurzum Reserve, which is located at a considerable distance from main roads and cities (the nearest city is situated at a distance of 200 km), the experts of the project had a task to organize actions, attracting people to this rarely visited territory, and raise the capacity of local communities to generate income from visitors.

To achieve this goal the following activities were implemented in autumn 2008:

1. Support of many activities was provided by the project to organize Crane Festival – 2008;

2. A training workshop on production of souvenirs from local materials and felt applying different types of embroidery and production technology was organized;

3. A training workshop for the owners of guest houses was conducted;

4. A contest-workshop on making milk products was organized;

5. A training workshop on ecological sanitation and alternative energy with participation of representatives of especially protected natural territories from the western, central and northern regions of Kazakhstan was organized and conducted.

Crane Festival

Crane Festival - 2008, held September 13-14, already has become a tradition and is conducted every year, increasing the level, covering a greater number of the population and the area.
As for ecotourism development the festival resulted in the following:

1. More than 12 thousand schoolchildren (also including representatives from Uzbekistan and Russia) took part in creative contests during the year at the stage of festival preparation and, consequently, were, at a minimum, informed about the existence of the Naurzum Reserve.

2. Twenty-six delegations from different cities and districts of Kostanay region numbering 106 people arrived at the festival.

3. The participants of the festival visited the museum of the Naurzum Reserve, the school Crane Museum, where the best works of the previous festivals are exhibited and where one may learn about the history of the International Cranes Foundation and to see a well-known valise of the founder of the foundation – Mr. George Archibald.

4. A flower exhibition was organized by Dokuchayev secondary school during the festival.

5. A personal exhibition of the works of local artist Ansagan Torin was prepared and conducted.

6. A sellout-exhibition of local souvenirs was organized.

Workshop on souvenirs

A master-class on the fabrication of souvenirs and other items using different types of embroidery and production technology was of great interest to the local population. Teachers of the project sites, schoolchildren, students, technologists and local inhabitants numbering 29 people participated in the workshop. Thirty-five applications for participation were submitted.

High-professional designers from the South Kazakhstan region of Elmira and Gulnara Shermuhanbetovs designed the models of souvenirs and taught each participant to embroider Kazakh ornaments and logotypes, to cut and sew. The participants not only managed to make three-four of their own products by the end of the workshop, but also learned about the theoretical basis of production and realization of souvenirs. It was using felt as the basis for the souvenirs that attracted the attention of the participants, because there is excessive amount of wool in the countryside and often it is taken to dump because of small profit from it.

The participants were given a guide on designing as distributing material and a set of different types of Kazakh ornaments, as well as a set of materials (beads, color threads, color felt) and tools (a set of needles, scissors) for independent making of souvenirs.
The workshop had not been finished yet, but the participants were ordered and they sold souvenir key rings to “Naurzum Bionet" local NGO depicting the logo of the organization. Next month already the products of workshop participants were bought by the participants of the crane festival and the workshop on ecological sanitation and alternative energy with pleasure.

The administration concluded contracts on fabrication of original products with the logotype of the Naurzum Reserve and project with several people.

Deputy director of the Naurzum reserve, Zeinelova Mari, welcomes participants to the souvenir workshop.

Workshop on guest houses

Due to the festival and workshops in Karamendy, there was a necessity of accommodation for arriving people. Beginning with the first festival in 2006, some of the inhabitants provided housing for participants, and due to the workshops organization the flow of visitors increased, and the need in rendering accommodation services appeared. Simultaneously the issue of the quality of rendered services and the principle of pricing for the services became urgent. In connection with the conducted cycle of workshops on alternative livelihoods and the national workshop on ecological sanitation and alternative energy within the framework of the project, organization of the training for the owners of guest houses was arranged.  Fifteen women, who already had experience in reception guests, were invited to the workshop. The workshop was conducted by the project expert Rauf Sabitov - an honorable instructor of tourism in RK and Fedde Yoritsma - a representative of the international organization "Women in Europe for Common Future" (WECF). The principles of ecotourism, preparation and reception of guests, requirements for premises, bedding, particularities of meals, pricing and taxation were considered at the workshop. Mr. Fedde Yoritsma told about the possibility of using alternative energy in guest houses and the problem of ecological sanitation.

At the end of the workshop trainer Mr. Sabitov shared experience in creation of successful guest houses and the problem related to pricing. Each participant was delivered the standards of quality and the methods of guest houses assessment developed by the Kazakhstan Tourist Association.

Contest-workshop on milk products

The objective of the contest – workshop was to identify the capacity of local foodstuff producers (cheese, kumis and other milk products) and to prepare the basis for conducting a master-class on making cheese. The problem is that the local community has a possibility to produce ecologically safe milk, but because of remoteness of markets they can not get profit.

Production of milk products with a long shelf time will help to solve this problem and will become an alternative source of income for the local population.   Local NGOs ("Ak Niet" PA, "Ak Tyrna" RC), a district library, Parastatov IP, Naurzum district society of fisherman and huntsmen were involved in organization and conduction of the contest - workshop. Ten local women directly participated in the contest with their own products. Having shown their own initiative, they did not limit themselves to cheese only, but provided a variety of traditional milk products: curd (salty cheese), sour cream, balkaymak and different types of pot cheese. Forty-one people took part in tasting the products. As a result of the tasting, producers of each type of presented products were identified. The winners were awarded valuable prizes and were invited to participate in a future master-class on making cheese.

Judging of cheeses and other milk products at the production workshop and contest.

Training workshop on alternative energy and ecosanitation

The issues of ecological sanitation and alternative energy are the most important ones in tourism based on local communities. The condition of toilet, the water quality and epidemiological safety are the points greatly determining success of tourist business.

A workshop on alternative energy and ecosanitation was organized within the framework of Siberian Crane Wetland Project and "Empowerment and Local Action" Program financed by the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands at Naurzum National Natural Reserve for representatives of EPNT, NGOs of the North, Central and West Kazakhstan, as well as representatives of the local population.

A master-class on making water pumps out of plastic pipes was organized for 15 participants of the workshop. All participants of the workshop took with them the pumps that they made themselves. The pumps, along with being simple in construction, are a reliable means for raising water from great depths with a minimum diameter of a well (60-80 mm). These pumps can be used for raising water by means of wind installation.

The working of hydro ram - a pump, which is installed in "Garden" cordon of the Naurzum Reserve, for raising water allows providing the cordon with water without expenses for electric power and fuel, made a great impression on the participants. This hydro ram also pumps water to a summer shower, a container keeping warmth well is installed on the top of it, and overhead it is covered by a vacuum glass-block. Such a "solar" barrel allows having warm water constantly even in chilly autumn and spring days. At the cordon the participants of the workshop also watched the first "dry" toilet in the Kostanay region, which was constructed within the framework of a network project "Ecosanitation-Energy-Ecology", implemented in Kostanayskoy area by "Naurzum BioNet" youth public association and "Ak Niet" public association.

The participants of the workshop stayed in guest houses of Karamendy village, contributing to the development of tourism based on local communities in such a way.

For more information on this program please contact:

Vera Inyutina,
Project Manager
Astana city, tel./fax: 8-717-2-34-01-45
E-mail: vera.inyutina@mail.ru
http://www.scwpkaz.kepter.kz/

Rauf Sabitov, Tamara Sabitova
Project experts

Ekaterina Salyutina
SCWP Expert on public relations

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Last update: 24 December 2008

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