Ongoing research projects
Kazakhstan’s Gendered Foreign Terrorist Fighters Rehabilitation Strategies
This research examines Kazakhstan's repatriation strategy of foreign terrorist fighters (FTF), called Zhusan, in a comparative perspective and via a gender lens. Since 2019, the Kazakhstani government repatriated 700 Kazakh citizens from Syria and Iraq. Among them, 187 were women, 490 were children and the remaining 33 were men. All men were prosecuted immediately upon their return to Kazakhstan whereas only 17 women and one minor were prosecuted for crimes committed related to terrorism.
Nur Astana mosque, Astana, Kazakhstan.
The making of Salafism in Central Asia
This research addresses discursive practices in the literature on security issues in Central Asia. I examine the recent discursive shift from Wahhabism to Salafism as the main “non-traditional movement” that poses a threat to Central Asian societies.
Screenshot from a video produced by the city of Shymkent, Kazakhstan, to warn women about the dangers of wearing miniskirts.
Politics of Sex in Central Asia
This project looks at the link between authoritarianism and policies affecting gender and sexuality in Central Asia and compare Kazakhstan’s, Kyrgyzstan’s, and Uzbekistan’s policies regarding polygyny, same sex relationships, and sex work.
Masters Degree in Political Science at Nazarbayev University
MA Supervision
I have been involved in the supervision of a number of Master theses over the years.
Gonchi, Tajikistan.
Polygyny project
This research focuses on the phenomenon of polygyny in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan and seeks to investigate the factors responsible for the increase of polygynous relationships.
Political Economy of Education Research (PEER)
The PEER Network is a three-year initiative led by four universities (Ulster, Cape Town, Nazarbayev and Sussex) aimed at improving the quality of political economy analysis of education in partnership with academics, policymakers and practitioners in conflict-affected countries. The core objective of the PEER Network is to develop a critical and locally grounded approach to Political Economy Analysis (PEA) of Education that will help national, regional and global level policymakers and practitioners make socially just decisions about investments in education that benefit children in contexts of conflict and crisis.