The number of registered corruption offences in Kazakhstan has nearly halved in recent years. At the same time, the number of bribery-related cases continues to rise, and the material damage from corruption crimes has increased tenfold.
HOW THE SITUATION WITH CORRUPTION CRIMES HAS CHANGED
According to the analytical portal Finprom.kz, citing the Committee on Legal Statistics and Special Records of the General Prosecutor's Office, in the first five months of 2026 Kazakhstan recorded 679 corruption-related criminal offences, which is 11.1% fewer than a year earlier. At the same time, articles on receiving a bribe, giving a bribe and mediating in bribery accounted for 427 cases, or 62.9% of all corruption crimes.
Under the article 'Receiving a bribe', analysts recorded an increase of 11.9%. The number of episodes of exceeding authority or official powers also rose by 20%, and the number of cases of abuse of power increased by 40%.
WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE REGIONS
The worst performer in terms of the number of registered bribery cases for January–May 2026 was Astana, where 56 criminal cases were registered. In second place was Kostanay Region with 38 cases, and in third place was Almaty with 32 cases. The lowest figures were recorded in Abay Region, Akmola Region and West Kazakhstan Region (WKR).
At the same time, a number of regions saw a decrease in the number of registered cases under bribery-related articles, including in North Kazakhstan Region (NKR), Pavlodar Region, WKR and Akmola Region.
HOW MATERIAL DAMAGE HAS CHANGED
The number of registered corruption-related criminal offences fell from 2,200 cases in 2020 to 1,200 in 2025. At the same time, the amount of damage caused rose from over 8 billion tenge to 110.6 billion tenge in 2024.
It is noted that the available data is insufficient to conclude whether the decline in the number of registered offences is linked to a reduction in the level of corruption or to a change in detection rates.
WHAT PUNISHMENTS ARE RECEIVED BY THOSE CONVICTED OF BRIBERY
In 2025, 312 people were named as suspects under the article 'Receiving a bribe', 239 people went to trial, and 188 people were convicted. Of these, 58 people received actual prison sentences, while fines were imposed on 128 people.
The proportion of convicted individuals receiving actual prison terms under the article 'Receiving a bribe' was 30.9%. For comparison, among those found guilty of exceeding authority or official powers, 80.6% of convicts received actual sentences, and among those convicted of giving a bribe, the figure was 21%.
A LOOK AT THE STATISTICS
Founder of FBRK, journalist Kirill Pavlov, commenting on the statistics, highlighted the ratio between the number of people convicted under the article 'Receiving a bribe' and the number of individuals who were given actual prison sentences.
According to Kirill Pavlov, the key factor in fighting corruption is not so much the severity of the punishment as the likelihood of it being imposed.
As an illustration, he compared the chances of avoiding a prison sentence to the probability of winning in gambling. According to Kirill Pavlov, the probability of not receiving a real prison term in cases of receiving a bribe is about four in five. He noted that with such figures, 'the odds remain in favour of the bribe'.