This is a translation of Adam’s post on the Russian language blog.  

Recently the Kazakhstan president has made some reshuffling in the state apparatus. The most notable and politically significant among them was - according to a shared opinion of observers -  appointment of Kairat Kelimbetov to the post of head of the presidential administration. The young man is believed to have a technocrat’s image.

A 39-year-old economist, educated in Moscow, has made a consecutive and successful carrer on the public service from the officer at the planning department in the Ministry of Economy up to the head of this ministry. Until recently he was heading the state Fund of Sustainable Development “Kazyna”, and last year he became deputy chairman of the presidential “Nur-Otan” party, which grabbed all seats in the parliament. Interestingly, in 2001, Kelimbetov was among the founders of the Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan movement, which called for democratic reforms.

The post of the head of presidential administration is a key one - and one of the most powerful in the country. Whilst experts are trying to guess what stands behind the appointment (economic prioritiy of the state policy and the task of tackling the credit crunch, or renewal of the elites) one thing is pretty clear so far — it is possible to make a carrer in the public office. Perhaps, this is the main message sent by the reshuffling against the background of new attack on corruption, declared by the ruling party.