The Akimat of Kokshetau has entered into a contract worth 54 million tenge for the implementation of an interactive map for recording green spaces - "E-dendra". The contractor is ITS-PVL LLP, which holds the copyright for the program.
According to the press service of the Akimat, the right to use the tree registration map will be granted to the State Institution "Department of Housing and Communal Services of Kokshetau" for 48 years.
"The 'E-dendra' program is a unique tool for the effective management of the city's green fund. Under the contract, the city is acquiring a license to use the program, which includes several key functional capabilities", the press service of the Akimat writes.
It is reported that city residents will be able to track exactly where certain trees are located, see where new seedlings appear, and arrange among themselves for their care.
"This program will make it possible to clearly plan plantings, taking into account the soil, nearby trees, and possible tree diseases, which will yield good results in terms of tree survival rates. Each tree will receive a serial number and will be entered into a unified program register. Also, during the survey, a passport for each tree will be drawn up, showing: age, species, vitality status, location, and serial number", the statement reads.
According to the website "Golos Naroda", an expert from the Akmola branch of the public association "Ädildik joly", Samira Taitenova, noted that the contract for the implementation of "E-dendra" was concluded directly from a single source. In her opinion, if there is no competition among suppliers, it will not be possible to save budget money.
Furthermore, the public figure stated that the Kokshetau Akimat's procurement should have been coordinated with the Department of Digitalisation and Archives of the Akmola Region. But this was not done.
At the same time, the head of the Kokshetau branch of "Ädildik joly", Erlaz Zhayykbaev, said that a monitoring system for green spaces was also launched in Pavlodar in 2022. At that time, it was reported that anyone could view the passport – number, age, and condition of each tree – on the website greenpvl.kz. However, as we can observe today - the site is not working.
"We studied the Pavlodar procurement and hit a dead end, as we simply could not find this contract on the portal. In open sources, the developer is listed as 'Techno Style' LLP, and ecologists from the 'Bereginya-Bio' public foundation were involved, but the procurement was supposedly carried out through the 'Enbek-Pavlodar' branch of the state enterprise 'Enbek' for approximately 41 million tenge", Erlaz Zhayykbaev stated.
At a meeting organised by the Kokshetau Akimat, public activists expressed concerns that the "E-dendra" project could become a one-off initiative costing 54 million tenge.
The Akimat, for its part, promised to create a working group. It will monitor the quality of work of the contractor. The group will include representatives from the departments of land relations and architecture, housing and communal services, forestry, the anti-corruption service and the prosecutor's office, as well as the program's developers and public activists.