There has been a change of chief executive at the state-owned printing company ‘Uchkun’

There has been a change of chief executive at ‘Uchkun’. Since 5 October, the company has been headed by Ilgiz Tapaev, who previously led the marketing and public procurement department at the Presidential Administration. Bakytbek Sultanov, who had held the post for more than four years, has stepped down.

The decision to change the management was taken by the board of directors of ‘Uchkuna’ on 5 October. Sultanov’s departure was attributed to health reasons, which forced him to resign.

Sultanov took the helm at ‘Uchkun’ in August 2022. The company produces items of national importance, including passports, excise stamps, diplomas and certificates, and also prints books and school textbooks.

It is worth noting that this personnel decision coincided with the ongoing controversy surrounding the distribution of school textbooks. The change in leadership came a few weeks after the company found itself at the centre of public attention due to the school textbooks. In September, parents reported a shortage of books in state schools, whilst some editions printed by ‘Uchkun’ were found on sale in markets. The issue was also raised in the Jogorku Kenesh.

On 22 September, it emerged that a criminal case had been opened into the sale of textbooks that were intended to be provided free of charge to schoolchildren. However, there is no information in open sources to suggest that the CEO’s departure is linked to the investigation.

Sultanov himself had previously stated that finished products could not leave the premises of the company unchecked, as ‘Uchkun’ is a secure facility with security guards and a monitoring system. Representatives of the company also pointed out that, once the textbooks had been handed over, their subsequent distribution fell outside the printing house’s area of responsibility.

The new head, Ilgiz Tapaev, worked at the Presidential Administration prior to joining ‘Uchkun’, where he headed the marketing and public procurement division. The company did not provide any further details of his professional background when announcing his appointment.