The role of English in business communication in Kazakhstan

Abstract

Nowadays in Kazakhstan multilingualism becomes
the trend with the English language gaining growing popularity
alongside the two existing languages (i.e. the Kazakh as the only
official language and Russian widely used as a language of
interethnic communication). While English is regarded as a
condition for successful integration into the global economy and
becomes one of the priorities of the state policy, there are some
concerns towards the role of English in the development of
linguistic balance in Kazakhstan. The purpose of this paper is to
report the use of the English language in modern Kazakhstani
business community based on survey findings conducted in
national, international and foreign companies in Kazakhstan.
The survey shows that English is currently mainly used at
workplace and for specific purposes such as emails, writing a
business letter, business trip abroad, etc. In terms of motives of
learning English, developing international outlook, career
development and personal growth have been mentioned as the
most common reasons of English proficiency among Kazakhstani
business professionals.