Serik Akhmetov

Serik Nyghmetuly Akhmetov (Серік Нығметұлы Ахметов; born 25 June 1958) was a Prime Minister of Kazakhstan from 2012 to 2014.

Akhmetov began his career in 1975 as a turner apprentice, then worked as a turner at the Karmetkombinat.

From 1976, he served in the Soviet Army.

In 1978, Akhmetov returned to the Karmetkombinat as a turner where he was elected as a Secretary of the Komsomol Committee of the Plant in 1983.

In 1985, he graduated from the plant-technical educational institution at the Karaganda Metallurgical Combine with a degree in metallurgical engineering, and in 1993, from the postgraduate course of the State University of Management, earning a doctorate in economics.

In 1985, he was elected the First Secretary of the Temirtau City Committee of LKMSK and from 1986, as the First Secretary of the Karaganda Regional Committee of the Komsomol.

From 1989, Akhmetov was the organizer of the Karaganda Regional Party Committee.

In 1993, he was appointed head of the Marketing Bureau, then head of the Department of Foreign Economic Relations of the Karmetkombinat.

Akhmetov also headed the Futau Joint Venture.

In 1995, Akhmetov became the general director of the Ken Dala Agro-Industrial Exchange, becoming president of the reorganized exchange in 1996.

From 1998 to 2001, Akhmetov served as a state inspector of the Organizational and Control Department of the Administration of the President of Kazakhstan.

In 2001, he was appointed as the akim of Temirtau and then in 2003 as the first deputy akim of Astana.

In 2004, he became the head of the State Inspectorate of the Office of Organizational Control Work and Personnel Policy of the Administration of the President.

He has also served as Chairman of the Board of the Atameken National Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers of Kazakhstan since 2005.

From 2005, Akhmetov served as an executive director, then chairman of the board of the Atameken National Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers of Kazakhstan.

Akhmetov served for a time as first deputy akim of Astana before being appointed to government as Minister of Transport and Communications on 25 September 2006.

On 25 September 2006, he was appointed as a Minister of Transport and Communications.

Akhmetov met with Igor Levitin, the Russian Transport Minister on 25 October 2006.

Akhmetov proposed building a transport corridor using preexisting roads from southern Kazakhstan through Kazan and Orenburg to St. Petersburg.

Minister Levitin said the Russian Government would consider the proposal, but that it wanted the corridor to go through Chelyabinsk.

They discussed the "transit of planes from Asia to Europe" and transportation through the Caspian Sea.

Levitin plans on making a working trip to Aqtau to further discuss sea transportation.

On 9 November Akhmetov and Levitin met in Aqtau, signing an agreement creating a train and ferry link between Aqtau and Makhachkala ports.

The first ferry will carry 52 freight cars of grain and oil products on 10 November.

He traveled with Deputy Prime Minister Karim Masimov, Finance Minister Natalya Korzhova, and Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Baktykozha Izmukhambetov to Beijing, China from 16–17 November 2006 to boost bilateral relations.

From March 2009, Akhmetov served as Deputy Prime Minister before becoming the akim of Karaganda Region in November 2009.

On March 3, 2009, he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

August 19, 2009 concurrently appointed to the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kazakhstan Engineering.

On November 19, 2009, by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, he was appointed Akim of the Karaganda region.

On 4 March 2009, Akhmetov was appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan.

While serving the post, he was concurrently appointed to the post of chairman of the Board of Directors of Kazakhstan Engineering on 19 August 2009.

In January 2012, he was appointed as the First Deputy Prime Minister before becoming PM following the resignation of Karim Massimov on 24 September 2012.

Since January 20, 2012 - First Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Since September 24, 2012 - Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

He served as the Minister of Defense from April to October 2014.

In November 2014, Akhmetov was arrested after being accused of committing a crime while serving as an äkim of Karaganda Region to which he was convicted in December 2015.

April 2, 2014 - President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev accepted Akhmetov's resignation.

From April 3 to October 22, 2014 - Minister of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

He was eventually released in September 2017.

Akhmetov was born in the town of Temirtau.