Kazakh president appoints new PM after dismissing govt

Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev appointed a new prime minister on Monday after dismissing the government over a lack of economic development. “The head of state signed a decree appointing [Askar] Mamin as the prime minister of Kazakhstan,” Nazarbayev’s office said on Twitter. Mamin, 53, has previously served as first deputy prime minister and also worked as transport and communications minister and mayor of capital Astana, AFP said. Mamin’s predecessor Bakytzhan Sagintayev was sacked over what Nazarbayev described as poor economic performance, despite the Central Asian nation’s vast energy resources.