Kazakhstan National MAB Committee is branch of National Commission of Republic of Kazakhstan for UNESCO and ISESCO. Committee exists for the development of the long-term international UNESCO Programme “Man and the Biosphere” (MAB) in Kazakhstan.
MAB (Man and the Biosphere) is an intergovernmental scientific program of UNESCO, aimed to establish scientific base to improve the relations between people and the environment on both local and global levels. It is a system of inter-disciplinary research, aimed to study the questions of biological and ecosystem diversity, as well as human and nature interaction. One of its main activities is the development of the global network of biosphere reserves.
The MAB Program was officially launched in 1970 at the XVI Session of the UNESCO General Conference. Its directing body is the International Coordination Council (ICC), composed of 30 countries, which are regularly re-elected at the sessions of the UNESCO General Conference. In the times between ICC sessions the operative direction of the MAB Program is carried out by the Bureau and Secretariat of the ICC, which coordinates the activity of national MAB committees in every country.
In Kazakhstan the National MAB Committee was established in 1978 by the Resolution of the Academy of Sciences of KazSSR as of 30 July 1978 as a part of Scientific Council for the problem “Nature protection and sustainable use of its resources”. Its goal was to coordinate scientific research of environmental condition and its protection. The first Chairman of the MAB Committee in Kazakhstan was academician A.N. Ilyaletdinov. After the National Commission of RoK for UNESCO on August 7, 2000 (http://unesco.natcom.kz/en/ ) the Kazakhstan MAB Committee became one of its structural units.
At the present time Kazakhstan National MAB Committee carries out its activities based on the Provisions of Kazakhstan National Committee of UNESCO Program Man and the Biosphere (MAB) at the National Commission of RK for UNESCO and ISESCO. The overall goal of the Committee’s activity is development of the national biosphere reserve’s network in the Republic of Kazakhstan, its integration in the global and regional biosphere reserves’ networks, analysis of the international experience in the development of the specially protected natural territories, as well as research of the problems of biological and ecosystem diversity’s conservation, human and nature interaction and distribution of ecological knowledge in the frames of UNESCO Man and Biosphere Program.
Renewed Committee with Chairman Prof. R. Jashenko started its activity on May 24, 2011. Some members of the Committee rotate every 2 years. In 2015, the Kazakhstan youth Committee of the MAB was organized, which was completely updated in 2020. In October 2020, the youth group of ambassadors of the Kazakhstan national Committee of the UNESCO program "Man and the biosphere" (MAB) was formed on a competitive basis.