Global Spotlight on Inclusive Education in Kazakhstan
The First World Congress on Inclusive Education took place in Almaty. The Congress featured 23 panel sessions covering 15 relevant topics addressing all aspects of life and development for children with special educational needs. Some of the sessions were held at Almaty universities.
The event gathered more than 3,000 participants from 40 countries, including university faculty, teachers, specialists, parents, government officials, and representatives of public organizations from all regions of Kazakhstan and beyond.
Sharing Best Practices: UNOWA’s Contribution
About 200 speakers from different countries and regions of Kazakhstan shared their expertise in inclusive education.
Among the speakers was Mykhailo Kalitkin, Co-founder of UNOWA. He emphasized that within the framework of the World Bank project “Modernization of Secondary Education”, courses were conducted on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and early autism diagnostics (ADOS-2) for university faculty implementing special pedagogy programs.
Additionally, teachers from secondary education institutions were trained, strengthening the link between higher education and practical professional preparation.
To ensure the sustainability of the project, UNOWA equipped inclusion support classrooms with interactive tools and didactic materials, enabling students to gain practical skills in providing psychological and pedagogical support for children with special needs.
Mykhailo also shared that during discussions with the Ministry of Education of Malta, World Bank representatives highly praised the progress and outcomes of the project. He noted that Kazakhstan’s experience has attracted significant attention from international partners and is recognized as one of the most successful examples of implementing innovative technologies in education.
Academic Conferences Advancing Inclusion and Innovation
Within the Congress, a key part of the program included international conferences hosted by Abai Kazakh National Pedagogical University and AlmaU – Almaty Management University.
Abai Kazakh National Pedagogical University served as one of the Congress’s strategic partners. The aim of the conference was to create a platform for advancing inclusion and pedagogical innovation, introducing new technologies and AI, and expanding access to quality education for all.
The international conference brought together experts in inclusive education from different countries, as well as university lecturers and school teachers from Kazakhstan.
Article Submitted by:
Andrew White
Poland
About UNOWA
UNOWA is an innovative education technology company focused on inclusive, scalable solutions for modern learning systems. Its flagship product, MIKKO, is the world’s first full-cycle inclusive education system, already implemented in national programmes like Kazakhstan’s Project 8709-KZ. UNOWA also leads with Ulabs, a next-generation STEM platform using AI and sensor-based tools to deliver immersive, hands-on learning. With a strong focus on localisation and policy alignment, UNOWA supports governments in achieving measurable impact in education.
