Kazakhstan has officially brought its bicameral parliamentary system to an end after the lower house, the Mazhilis, and the upper house, the Senate, held their final joint session under the 1995 Constitution.

Addressing the historic session in the capital, Astana, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said the country was closing an important chapter in its post-independence history while beginning a new phase of constitutional and institutional reform.

"We are not only concluding a legislative term today, but also completing an era in the development of independent Kazakhstan and opening a new page in our state's history," Tokayev said.

The president announced that the new Constitution will enter into force on Wednesday, replacing the bicameral parliament with the Kurultai, a new unicameral legislature, while retaining Kazakhstan's presidential system of government.

Tokayev said the outgoing parliament had played a key role in strengthening state institutions, establishing the country's legal framework and supporting Kazakhstan's transition to a market economy following independence.

He added that the new constitutional model would be built on the principle of a "Strong President – Effective Kurultai – Accountable Government," describing it as the foundation for the country's next stage of political and institutional development.-(ILKHA)