Kazakhstan's drone plan adds unmanned systems to its spectrum plans

Kazakhstan's digital ministry must write radio frequencies or satellite channels for unmanned systems into the country's spectrum plans by the end of 2026, under a drone development plan the government approved on 13 October, the ministry said on 27 October.

Government Resolution 898 approves the Integrated Plan for the Development of Unmanned Systems for 2026 to 2029. Two of its measures, numbers 13 and 14, are orders of the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, prepared with the Ministry of Defence and due in the fourth quarter of 2026. The first adds frequencies or a satellite channel for unmanned systems to the plan for the prospective use of the radio spectrum for 2024 to 2029; the second adds them to the table that allocates frequency bands between radio services. Neither measure names a band.

The plan also asks for proposals to the government, due in the first quarter of 2027, on a single digital platform for unmanned aircraft and on UTM, an automated traffic management system for unmanned aircraft, in the capital and the cities of republican significance. A separate plan for drone ports, vertiports and charging and maintenance points is due in the same quarter, and a pilot of unmanned road freight is set for 2027 and 2028, paid for by private investment. Most other measures are marked as needing no funding.

The ministry said 18 government bodies take part. The plan's expected results include at least two research and development centres and the training of at least 1,000 specialists, among them UTM and cybersecurity staff. The ministry said part of the state's control over drone use will pass to the Interior Ministry, and that compulsory liability insurance for drone owners and cybersecurity rules for their communication links are being worked out.

The plan follows the Concept for the Development of Civil Unmanned Aviation for 2025 to 2031, approved by Resolution 412 of 4 June 2025. It adds to the ministry's recent work on satellite links, set out in our piece on SES, Starlink and OneWeb, and to its talks on a satellite component hub, set out in our report on CONTEC. The two spectrum orders are the first deliverables to watch.