Georgia invites Kazakh flood-affected children to a retreat

Borjomi Mayor Otar Arbolishvili officially invited Kazakh children from Atyrau and other flood-affected regions to a health retreat in Georgia, Khabar TV channel reported on April 26.

Borjomi and Atyrau became twin cities last year. As one of the most popular tourist destinations in Georgia, Borjomi invited 20 Kazakh children accompanied by adults for a ten-day vacation.

The organizers will conduct tours of mountains and coniferous forests, show ancient temples and palaces, and provide the services of a psychologist for children.

"We regret what is happening in Kazakhstan. We are also careful about this because last year we formalized our friendship, which is already historically derived from our ancestors. We have an offer to help: we offer a rehabilitation program for children. We want to bring the affected children here, distract them and show them our city," said Arbolishvili.

Support from Belgium

Meanwhile, activists of the student organization Qazaq Society, which unites young compatriots in Belgium, held a fair to collect funds for flood victims in Kazakhstan. Since most of them study at KU Leuven, one of Belgium's prestigious universities, students have set up several outlets offering Kazakh cuisine and national souvenirs.

They will contribute to relief efforts by channeling proceeds to funds in Kazakhstan dedicated to restoring property and helping affected people.

The fair was visited by the well-known candidate for the Belgian Parliament from the "Reformist Movement" party, Olivier Willeau, who told the story of the severe floods in Belgium in 2021 to understand how serious the consequences of natural disasters are.

"For me, this is a good opportunity to try Kazakh cuisine and get to know the culture, and in this way to support the Kazakh people in a difficult period," he said.

Kazakhstani companies are not left out either. Shareholders and managers of Kaspi Bank, Kazakhmys Corporation and KAZ Minerals have pledged to allocate up to 60 billion tenge ($135.9 million) for the restoration of housing in the North Kazakhstan region.

Across the country, 38,521 people have returned to their homes, and 6,726 people remain in evacuation centers.

Since the beginning of the flood, more than 12.9 million cubic meters of melt water have been pumped out, more than 7 million bags and 1.5 million tons of inert material have been laid.