Speaker
Description
The trolleybuses system in Bishkek was opened in 1951 as a gift for citizens for Independence Day and this year - 19 June 2024 - trolleybus wires were started to dismantle. Citizens started a campaign against this and appealed to the court.
There was a loan from the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development that funded the procurement of almost all trolleybuses and we still pay the loan as citizens but the city hall started to desptroyment of nearly 75-year-old trolleybuses infrastructure. Beside this the City Hall announced that all trolleybuses will be replaced by Electrobuses by a loan from Asian Development Bank. This paradoxical situation is questioning how banks that have “development” strategies and having strict policies just jump out from their projects. What is banks’ responsibilities and how people can participate in the decision-making process, if freedom of association is limited, workers are depressed, and instead of participating in public sessions citizens goes to police office.
Biography
Bermet Borubaeva/ Researcher, Public Policy Analyst, curator/ Profile: Born in Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek. Bermet Borubaeva is an independent researcher and public policy analyst. She has several publications in the fields of political science, public policy, and art. Currently works as an independent researcher, and analyst of environmental issues, publishing articles and curating ecological and art initiatives.
Research interests: public policy, urban environment & transport policy, political ecology, political participation, political economy, bike-sharing systems
