On June 29, 2018, the Belt and Road Institute of Beijing Normal University and the China and Central Asia Research Center of KIMEP University in Kazakhstan together established the China-Kazakhstan Belt and Road Research Center, and the signing ceremony of the memorandum of cooperation was held at Beijing Normal University.

Under the leadership of Hu Biliang, Dean of the Belt and Road Institute at Beijing Normal University, the signing ceremony was joined by former Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan and distinguished professor at Beijing Normal University's Emerging Markets Institute Djoomart Otorbayev; former Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan and distinguished professor at Beijing Normal University's Emerging Markets Institute Oraz Zhandosov; and the Executive Chairman of the Emerging Markets Forum in the United States Harold Koley.

The Kazakh Institute of Management, Economics and Strategy (KIMEP) is the oldest and largest American-style university in Central Asia. In 1992, President Nursultan Nazarbayev of the Republic of Kazakhstan recognized the dire need for Western education in the socio-economic environment of Kazakhstan, thus founding the KIMEP University, which would grow to become one of the renowned universities of the world. The university currently offers fifteen undergraduate programs, three master's programs, and one Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program.

With the establishment of the joint research center, there would be enhanced exchange programs with the scholars and students from local universities. There will also be active engagement in establishing institutions with the purpose of research exchange and cooperation as well as the promotion of direct interaction between talents and society. As one of the five Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan is an important partner to China in the region. The cooperation with Kazakhstan’s KIMEP University will play a positive role in implementing the Belt and Road Initiative in Central Asia as well as in fostering exchanges between China and Kazakhstan.

Organizational Structure

China-side Director: Pan Qingzhong

Kazakhstan-side Director: Oraz Jandosov (Former Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan)