About the Center

The International Center for Interfaith and Interreligious Dialogue was established in Astana on 25 April 2019. The decision to establish the Center was adopted by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan pursuant to Resolution No. 226 of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in implementation of an initiative put forward at the VI Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions in October 2018.

The Center serves as an international platform providing organizational and infrastructural support for the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, as well as its institutions.

The primary objective of the Center is to promote interfaith and intercultural understanding and foster international cooperation through open and constructive dialogue involving religious associations, international organizations, the expert community, and government authorities. 

Key Areas of the Center’s Activities

• fostering interfaith and interreligious dialogue at the national and international levels; 
• providing organizational and substantive support for the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, its Secretariat, and Working Group; 
• engaging with domestic and international religious associations and their spiritual leaders; 
• conducting fundamental and applied research in the field of religion; 
• monitoring and analyzing the religious landscape; 
• preparing analytical reports, policy briefs, and recommendations on matters of religious policy; 
• conducting religious studies expertise; 
• organizing international conferences, round tables, expert meetings, seminars, and other dialogue platforms; 
• promoting Kazakhstan’s experience in fostering interfaith harmony at the international level.

Objectives and Tasks of the Center

• promoting peace and harmony among all religions in an atmosphere of mutual respect; 
• ensuring continuous engagement with domestic and international religious associations and their spiritual leaders; 
• cooperating with international institutions, including organizations, centers, and other relevant entities, and concluding memorandum of understanding on matters pertaining to interreligious and intercultural dialogue; 
• organizing and conducting meetings of the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, its Secretariat, and Working Group; 
• organizing and contributing to the preparation of international, national, and regional conferences, round tables, seminars, initiatives, and competitions on religious issues aimed at strengthening interreligious and intercultural dialogue; 
• analyzing the state of and trends in the development of the religious situation worldwide; 
• monitoring religious-related materials in domestic and international mass media; 
• assisting the state authorities of the Republic of Kazakhstan and participating in the activities of information and outreach groups at all levels in the implementation of state policy in the religious sphere, including efforts to counter religious and other forms of extremism; 
• promoting Kazakhstan’s experience in interfaith dialogue at the international level.

The “International Center for Interfaith and Interreligious Dialogue” complies with the requirements of “ISO 37001:2025” in the areas of “Public Activities in the Field of Interfaith and Interreligious Dialogue” and “Research and Expert Assessment in the Field of Religious Studies.”