President of the International Council on Archives (ICA) Josée Kirps has arrived in Astana on an official visit. The highlight of her program was a visit to the Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – a key repository of the country’s political history and one of the active members of the global archival community.

The meeting was opened by the Director of the Archive, Aliya Mustafina, who emphasized the importance of this visit for the development of international cooperation.

“The ICA brings together more than 2,000 members from 149 countries. Since February 2023, our Archive has been part of this global professional family. Ms. Josée Kirps came to Kazakhstan specifically to learn about our activities and meet our colleagues. You personally support the Congress of Archivists of Kazakhstan, in which the ICA has twice been a co-organizer - in 2022 and 2024. We greatly appreciate this and thank you for your attention to our archive,” said Aliya Mustafina.

In turn, addressing the staff, Josée Kirps noted that this was her first visit to Kazakhstan. She spoke warmly of Astana’s modern appearance and remarked that the new building of the Archive impressed her with its beautiful architecture. She pointed out that the Archive is equipped with modern facilities that meet international standards. According to Ms. Kirps, it was particularly important for her to see the new building, as Luxembourg is currently planning the construction of a new National Archive, and this visit gave her the opportunity to learn about Kazakhstan’s approach to designing and equipping archival facilities.

The ICA President highlighted the special value of international connections, especially for countries with small territories, such as Luxembourg, whose National Archive she heads.

“For us, international cooperation is of particular importance. It provides access to new, modern approaches and allows us to address key challenges together. Archives around the world may have different philosophies, but we are all united by common goals – the development of archival work and the strengthening of the professional community. In this context, the ICA serves as a bridge for archives of all countries, connecting cultures, practices, and ideas for a shared future. By cooperating, we create a common history of humanity,” said Josée Kirps.

Ms. Kirps also shared her vision for the future of the sector, touching on the introduction of artificial intelligence in archival work. In her words, the use of AI will soon become widespread, and it is important to apply it wisely, with proper safeguards in place.

As an example, she cited projects of the Luxembourg National Archive. One of them deals with processing parliamentary documents. Thanks to AI, specialists have improved the accessibility of materials – algorithms automatically determine which information is confidential (such as personal data), redact it, while keeping the rest of the document open to users.

Another project focused on converting transcriptions of medieval documents from Latin into French. Initial attempts were unsuccessful, with the system making numerous mistakes. However, during the course of the work, 90% translation accuracy was achieved, and AI is now successfully used for translating Latin texts into French.

During the meeting, young staff members of the Archive had the opportunity to ask the ICA President questions and discuss key trends in the development of the archival field. Josée Kirps explained that one of the important projects the ICA is working on is training programs for archivists. These programs are open to specialists seeking to deepen their knowledge, enhance their qualifications, and exchange international experience. According to the ICA President, the organization is always open to joint development.

In conclusion, she thanked her Kazakh colleagues for the warm welcome and hospitality, expressing confidence that cooperation will continue to grow and bring mutual benefit.

It should be noted that the Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan is part of the global archival network and cooperates with such international organizations as UNESCO, the United Nations, and the International Council on Archives. Since 2022, the parties have been implementing joint projects.

With ICA’s support, the Congress of Archivists has been held twice in Kazakhstan, and in 2023 Kazakhstani specialists took part in the largest international ICA Congress in Abu Dhabi.