Kazakhstan’s Constitution enshrines free access to mandatory education until grade 11. Constitutional provisions also allow for students to compete for free access to university education (UNESCO 2008). The Law on Education (amended in 2011) establishes the basis for government education policy and delineates the roles of national education system stakeholders. The Law on State Youth Policy (2004) provides the legal and practical foundation of creating youth policy in Kazakhstan. It establishes several social services and describes the roles of the government Ministries involved in their provision (MoES 2011a). The Law on Socialization and Medico-Educational Assistance to Children with Limited Abilities (2002) outlines the social policies provided by the Government in areas of development, education, labour-market integration and medical aid to children with disabilities.

The Ministry of Education and Science (MoES) of Kazakhstan is responsible for education policy development and regulation of education institutions. The MoES is divided into 9 departments and 3 committees. The former include departments of Character Building and Youth Policy, Secondary Education and Higher and Postgraduate Education among others. The latter comprise the Education and Science Control, as well as Science and Children’s Rights Protection Committees. The Departments of Education (DoE), found in each province and district, are created by the regional authorities. Each DoE functions as a regional board of management in the education sphere. These departments execute the national education strategy at the regional level and determine the amount of funds allocated to education from the regional budgets. DoEs are also responsible for: the establishment, organization and management of educational institutions (kindergartens, secondary schools, technical-professional schools, colleges) at the local level, and the provision of material and technical resources; the appointment of the heads of educational institutions; enforcing compulsory secondary education; executing the Information Technology Programme of secondary schools (IBE 2007). The education system in Kazakhstan is highly centralized, leaving little autonomy to school officials, teachers and professors. For instance, course syllabi and curricula must be approved the MoES. 

Several institutions, subordinate to the MoES, are involved in education sector planning. These include: National Academy of Education; National Institute for Training and Continued Learning of Education Managers and Practitioners (established over 40 years ago); National Preschool Centre; National Testing Centre; National Education Quality Centre; National Government Centre of Technical Expertise in Education; and several national Health Centres (MoES n.d.(a)). The Kazakh Academy of Education is the leading research organization in the field of pedagogy, methodology and assessment of the educational process. There are two institutes within the Academy: the Institute of Higher Education and the Institute of Secondary Education (IBE 2007).