The 5th Annual Ak Ilbirs National Film Award ceremony took place at Manas cinema theater on May 13, 2016. The awarding ceremony took place after the demonstration of films shot in 2015 and nominated in 2016. The demonstration of nominated films was held at Chingiz Aitmatov Cinema House in early May. The jury included the members of the Union of Cinematographers of the Kyrgyz Republic. Based on the voting results, Sutak, a film directed by Mirlan Abdykalykov, was announced as the best film of 2015. It previously won Nika Film Award of the Russian Academy of Cinema Arts in the category "Best Film of CIS and Baltic countries."

Home for Mermaids, Uzbekistan, won Ak Ilbirs award in the category “The best film in Central Asia”. The prize for an outstanding contribution to the National Cinematography was awarded to cameramen, Mr. Nurtai Barbiev, the People’s Artist of the Kyrgyz Republic. The prize for an outstanding contribution to the World cinema was awarded to Mrs.Natalia Arinbasarova, the Honored Artist of the RSFSR, the USSR State Prize laureate and a holder of Volpi gold cup at the 26th Venice International Film Festival.

«Business against corruption: modern challenges and tendencies» international anticorruption conference took place in Bishkek last week. The conference was organized by the BizExpert Analytical Center along with the National Alliance of Business Associations (NABA) with support from the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ). Kalikova & Associates law firm was represented by Ulan Tilenbaev, Managing Partner.

The main goal of the conference was to attract public attention to the problems of corruption, to discuss existing anticorruption tendencies and mechanisms and to share successful experiences in carrying out anticorruption initiatives. The conference also discussed anticorruption compliance mechanisms for business sector widely used in Europe and USA and helping companies to identify and manage the risks of corruption. Speaking about anticorruption compliance mechanisms, Ulan Tilenbaev noted that their introduction can positively affect foreign investor perceptions of the local business climate. He added that the anticorruption compliance mechanisms should be used by all businessmen who value their businesses and want to go further, all the more so as such mechanisms are not prohibited in the Kyrgyz Republic.

Kalikova & Associates Senior lawyer, Satkyn Beketaeva, took part in the business forum “Kyrgyzstan is the land of new opportunities”. The business forum was organized within the regular meeting of the United States-Central Asian Council on Trade and Investment (TIFA).

The main purpose of the business forum was to strengthen the strategic alliances and to establish new partner relations among the business communities of Central Asia and United States.

Kalikova & Associates Managing partner, Ulan Tilenbaev, took part in the meeting with the representatives of the business community of Germany accompanying the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany during his visit to the Kyrgyz Republic. The delegation included the representatives of major German corporations such us HeidelbergCement, Andritz Hydro, MAN Truck & Bus, Knauf, Claas, Papenburg, Deutsche Kabel and others.

During the meeting, the representatives of Kyrgyz companies informed the German colleagues about the current political situation in the country, economic and fiscal policy, legislative reforms aimed at improving the investment climate and business environment. The Parties discussed the possibilities of development and promotion of economic cooperation between the Kyrgyz and German companies.

The meeting was organized by the International Business Council and was held on March 31, 2016 in Hyatt.