Center for Natural Resources and Sustainability

Professional background

At school, I liked the exact sciences, especially mathematics and computer science. I wanted to study engineering or mathematics, but my mother put an end to this thinking by telling me that girls should not work in the field of engineering or energy. Children who grow up with oriental mindset tend to follow their parents, so I did the same and followed my mother words and chose the Faculty of Economics. However, at university I had to study Advanced Mathematics, which I liked and was good at.

When I was 20 years of old, I married my husband, who is a hydraulic engineer by profession. I am now in the energy sector, renewable energy, because of my husband’s huge contribution and support. I am very grateful and happy to be doing it now.

In 2008, there were rolling blackouts and at that time I gave birth to my youngest child, who was not even 40 days old. The electricity was constantly cut off. My husband was always at work, so it was difficult for me to be alone with my children. That's when I wondered why there wasn't enough electricity in Kyrgyzstan. There is a demand, but we cannot produce the amount we need. At the time, I could not physically deal with renewable energy sources. It was very expensive. The project started in 2017 and I am now in my 5th year in RES.

Challenges

The problem was that in 2017-2019 people didn't understand what RES (renewable energy sources) were, what wind, solar plants were. For Kyrgyzstan it seemed like a flight to Mars, although I said there was nothing wrong with that. Successful countries have been applying this experience for a long time, and they are building a wide variety of alternative energy, but at the time, very few people in our country knew about it and to be honest, they looked at me like I was crazy. But thanks to the Internet and a new generation that understands the importance of renewable energy sources, thanks to the constant coverage on TV and media, I got my results. Now not only people but also our government is supporting and moving in this direction.

Moment of inspiration

An important factor in my success was the delivery of the first wind power equipment in Kyrgyzstan's history. This is very important for the energy sector in Kyrgyzstan, which having gained the sovereignty, can finally talk about other types of energy sources. It was also the first-time that land was transformed for a wind farm.

I consider the day when, as part of the association, I got RES exempted from VAT on imports into the Kyrgyz Republic to be a star moment in my life. We had imported equipment which was taxed, and then we got the substation to be exempt from income tax for 5 years. This was also done under the association. Close cooperation with the authorities, round-table discussions in the media and active promotion have led to success.