Mukhtar Senggirbay

Assistant Professor at the Suleyman Demirel University (SDU) in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

He holds PhD in Political Science from Al-Farabi University in Almaty, Kazakhstan (2013), MSc in Global Conflict and Peace Processes from the University of Aberdeen, UK (2016) and MA in Journalism and Media management from Georgian Institute of Public Affairs, Tbilisi, Georgia (2009). His major research topics include ethnic relations and conflicts in former USSR; national, religious and ethnic identity in Central Asia; ethnic minorities, radicalization and resistance. He teaches political science, conflict studies and conflict reporting at the Suleyman Demirel University. Besides that, he provides policy analysis and consultations to the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and other state and non-state actors in Kazakhstan.

Formerly he worked as a correspondent and a chief editor at several media outlets in Kazakhstan, including Zhas Alash, Turkestan newspapers, and a Khabar TV Channel (2001-2008). In 2009-2012, he worked as the media specialist at the U.S. Consulate General in Almaty.

He extensively writes on political and social issues in Kazakhstan. His monograph “Techniques to prevent and regulate ethnic conflicts” was published in 2015 in Almaty. Moreover, he is a co-author of the National Report on Youth of Kazakhstan published by the Ministry of Education of Kazakhstan (2016) and a “Practical Journalism” textbook printed by the MediaNet Journalism Center (2017). He is a contributor to the Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty Kazakh Service and an editor of the Q-Analytics project run by the Central Asian Program of the George Washington University, US.

He frequently provides trainings and seminars on conflict resolution and peace journalism for different organizations, including Spiritual Administration of Kazakhstani Muslims, Nur Otan Party School of Management, MediaNet Journalism School, etc.