Blogger from Aktau Azamat Sarsenbayev stated that the Astana-based ‘Ecological Fund of Kazakhstan’ received a grant of 10 million tenge from the Mangistau region budget to establish a wild bird rescue centre. However, according to him, the actual work of saving birds continues to be carried out by local volunteers free of charge.
According to the Instagram page ‘Astana_city’, the blogger reported that the competition winner attempted to claim credit for the work of community activists.
Sarsenbayev also claims that representatives of the fund offered him cooperation and a payment of 500 thousand tenge. According to him, this involved including the volunteers' work in the organisation's report.
‘We did this for free and expected no help. And now they are asking for photos of the birds for their report. We treat and release wild birds for free, while the fund receives a 10 million tenge grant for the same work and tries to pass off our efforts as their own,’ Sarsenbayev emphasised.
The Mangistau region's Department of Natural Resources confirmed the allocation of the grant. The department clarified that the funding was intended not only for establishing the centre and veterinary services, but also for conducting 20 excursions, a festival for ‘Flamingo Day’, a creative works competition, and publishing materials on the work carried out.
The winner of the competition was the PA ‘Ecological Fund of Kazakhstan’. However, it is reported that the centre was not established within three months, and no report materials on its activities were published.
On 26 August, the department sent a letter to the NJSC ‘Centre for Support of Civil Initiatives’ requesting the return of the grant funds due to failure to fulfil obligations.