Through its Sponsorship and Donations programme, NCOC responds directly to the needs and requests of local communities. US$1.5 million is split equally each year between Atyrau and Mangystau oblasts for community sponsorship and donations. The Sponsorship and Donations programme focuses on five main areas of support for local communities: healthcare, education, sports, culture and charity.
To be aligned with NCOC’s sustainable development strategic goals, projects must contain elements of self-involvement and demonstrate sustainability for local communities. They should not support political or religious organizations, create conditions for unfair market competition, or undermine the ecological sustainability of local communities and/or natural ecosystems. The initiative for projects generally comes from the local communities, but may also be initiated by NCOC.
41 projects were completed in 2020 (19 in Atyrau Oblast and 22 in Mangystau Oblast). In total, US$23.7 million has been spent since 1998.
In addition, up to US$300,000 has been allocated every year since 2006 for summer camp for 200 underprivileged children and orphans from Atyrau and Mangystau Oblasts.
NCOC continues to support summer school project launched in 2018 jointly with Kazakhstan-British Technical University (KBTU) in Almaty, where children from underprivileged families of Makat and Tupkaragan Districts study the English language and the basics of programming. The classes are held in the laboratories of KBTU faculties of oil and gas and IT, business school and the Marine Academy.