An international competition was held to outline Kazakhstan's plan for a new capital city, Astana. It was won by Kiso Kurokawa from Japan, and on the basis of his suggestions a Master Plan for the city development till 2030 was developed. The dilapidated old city centre was replaced with new government buildings and the urban structure of the new capital is developing mainly on new territories on the left side of the river Ishim, including administrative and business complexes and new residential areas.

Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture