Drinking water at school: what Kazakhstan’s sanitary rules require
Drinking-water provision in Kazakhstan’s schools is mandatory: it is required by items 26–33 of the Sanitary Rules approved by the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan in Order No. ҚР ДСМ-76 of August 5, 2021. A school must give children free access to safe drinking water for the entire time they are on the premises, and the head of the school appoints a person responsible for it by written order. We break the requirements down item by item – and give you a checklist you can use to review a school before the sanitary inspectors arrive.
Which document regulates drinking-water provision in Kazakhstan’s schools?
Drinking-water provision in Kazakhstan’s educational institutions is governed by the Sanitary Rules on sanitary and epidemiological requirements for educational facilities, approved by the Minister of Health of Kazakhstan in Order No. ҚР ДСМ-76 of August 5, 2021 (in Russian; registered with the Ministry of Justice on August 6, 2021, No. 23890). The rules apply to schools, kindergartens, colleges, and other educational facilities; the latest amendments were introduced by an order of August 14, 2025, No. 80.
One important caveat: almost everything online on this topic describes Russia’s SanPiN 2.3/2.4.3590-20, which does not apply in Kazakhstan. If a school prepares for an inspection based on that guidance, it will still be assessed against Kazakhstan’s own rules. Those are what we cover below.
What the sanitary rules require: items 26–33 in plain language
Eight items of the rules deal with drinking water. In short: the building must have a working water supply, the water must be safe, access must be unrestricted, the drinkware must be clean, and a specific person appointed by order is responsible for the arrangements.
| Item | What the rules say | What it means for the school |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | Centralized domestic drinking-water and hot-water supply and drainage must be in working order | A broken tap or a blockage is already a violation, not a minor everyday nuisance |
| 27 | Facilities are supplied with safe, good-quality drinking water | The water must meet the regulatory standards – “tap water as is” is not an argument |
| 28 | Drinking-water provision is mandatory; water may be stored in containers, bottled, or boiled; coolers are cleaned per the manufacturer’s instructions; drinkware is clean | The school chooses the method, but each method has its own duties: a cooler-cleaning schedule, cups, and documentation for the water |
| 29 | Stationary drinking fountains must have a protective ring around the jet, at least 10 cm high | A fountain without a ring will fail inspection – the requirement is structural and can’t be added on paper |
| 30 | A responsible person is appointed by the head’s order; access to water must be available the whole time children are present | You need a signed order and real access: water “only in the canteen at break” is a violation |
| 31–33 | Without a centralized supply – local sources or delivered water in labeled containers with weekly disinfection | Rules for rural schools: dedicated transport, “drinking water” labeling, and a separate room for the reserve |
The wording that matters most for equipment is item 29. Here it is verbatim:
“The structural design of stationary drinking fountains provides for a protective ring around the vertical water jet, at least ten centimeters high.”
Item 29 of the Sanitary Rules, Order No. ҚР ДСМ-76 (unofficial translation)
Who is responsible for drinking water at school?
Under item 30, the responsible person is appointed by the head of the school, by their own order. In practice this is the facilities manager, a health worker, or the deputy head for facilities. Parents are not obliged to buy water or to arrange drinking-water provision: that is the school’s duty.
What falls within the appointed person’s responsibility:
- the chosen way of supplying water works every school day, not “when possible”;
- coolers and fountains are cleaned on schedule, and filters are changed on their prescribed intervals;
- bottled water has documentation, and boiled water is no more than three hours old;
- access to water is open the whole time children are present – including after-school programs and clubs.
The order can be worded simply: “Appoint … (position, full name) as the person responsible for arranging drinking-water provision; I reserve oversight of compliance for myself.” Date, signature, acknowledgment – and the document is ready for inspection.
Do these rules apply to kindergartens and colleges?
Yes. Order No. ҚР ДСМ-76 applies to all educational facilities – kindergartens, schools, colleges, boarding schools, and supplementary-education organizations. The drinking-water requirements are the same for all: free access to water, a responsible person, clean drinkware, and equipment maintenance.
Only the practice differs. In a kindergarten, drinking-water provision is built into the daily routine: teachers hand water to the children, so boiled and bottled water are more common – and the “no more than three hours” rule becomes a daily duty for staff. In schools and colleges, children get water themselves, so self-service points matter more – fountains in the hallways and near the canteen that run all day without staff involvement.
What are the ways to provide drinking water at school?
The rules allow several methods – a school chooses according to its conditions. Let’s compare them by requirements, effort, and cost.
| Method | What the rules require | Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drinking fountains | A protective ring ≥ 10 cm (item 29), working order, maintenance | No drinkware or logistics; mains water through filtration; buy once – works for years | Needs a water connection and drainage; filters changed on schedule |
| Water coolers (dispensers) | Regular cleaning per the manufacturer’s instructions (item 28) | Quick to start, a familiar format | Ongoing costs for 19 L bottles, storage, sanitizing, and cups |
| Bottled water | Compliance with regulatory standards, documentation for the water (item 28) | Independent of the mains | The most expensive per liter; procurement and storage are a constant task |
| Boiled water | Kept no more than 3 hours (item 28) | Minimal investment | Boiling and replacing it every 3 hours is hard to keep up in practice |
| Delivered water | Dedicated transport, labeled containers, weekly disinfection (items 32–33) | The only option without a mains supply | The most organizational duties |
For urban schools with a mains supply, the most predictable method in terms of cost is stationary drinking fountains: packaging and logistics account for up to 60–80% of the price of bottled water, whereas a fountain draws water from the mains and passes it through its own filtration. Boiled water is formally allowed, but the “no more than three hours” rule turns it into a daily chore.
What should a drinking fountain be like under Kazakhstan’s sanitary rules?
There is one mandatory requirement – a protective ring at least 10 cm high around the vertical jet (item 29). The ring shields the jet from direct contact with lips and hands: the child drinks from the arc of water without touching the spout. The rest are common-sense criteria that help a buyer tell school-grade equipment from a garden tap:
- Material. Food-grade stainless steel: it doesn’t rust, it washes clean, and it withstands a school hallway. Galvanized steel is not suitable for contact with drinking water.
- Vandal resistance. Steel from 1 mm thick with rounded edges: cheap models have a 0.45–0.5 mm body – it dents within the first school year.
- Filtration. Treatment stages inside the fountain remove the question of “what’s in the tap water anyway”: sediment, carbon, and membrane.
- Simple connection. The best option is running on mains pressure, without electricity: fewer approvals and fewer points of failure.
One design built specifically for item 29 is the OQUSHY drinking fountain with a protective ring: 1 mm stainless steel, three-stage SHINWOO filtration, and up to 2 L/min without electricity. We manufacture it in Almaty – the design was built for Kazakhstan’s rules from the start, not adapted after the fact. For a full breakdown of the criteria, see our article on how to choose a drinking fountain.
The facilities manager’s checklist: is the school ready for a sanitary inspection?
Go through the list – each item closes off a specific requirement of the rules:
- The order appointing a person responsible for drinking-water provision is signed and communicated (item 30)
- Access to water is open the whole time children are present, not only at breaks (item 30)
- The water supply and drainage are in working order, with no leaks (item 26)
- The fountains have a protective ring ≥ 10 cm (item 29)
- Coolers are cleaned per the manufacturer’s instructions, and a schedule is kept (item 28)
- Filters and cartridges are changed on schedule, with replacement dates recorded
- Clean drinkware or disposable cups are available for drinking (item 28)
- Boiled water is no more than 3 hours old, with the boiling time logged (item 28)
- Bottled water has quality documentation (item 28)
- Delivered water is in labeled containers, with weekly disinfection (items 32–33)
- There are drinking points on every floor with classrooms
- The maintenance contractor’s contacts are at hand – a breakdown won’t halt drinking-water provision
Consumables are a frequent cause of remarks: the filters are in place, but no one records the replacement dates. OQUSHY fountains use genuine SHINWOO SW-070 cartridges – from ₸6,000 per stage, available through Kaspi, replaced on the maintenance schedule. We covered the timing and wear signs separately – see how often to replace cartridges.
How much water should a student drink per day?
A useful benchmark is the guidance of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA, 2010): it counts all fluid intake over the day, including drinks and food. In heat and with physical activity, the need rises by 15–30%.
| Age | Daily amount |
|---|---|
| 2–3 years | 1.3 L |
| 4–8 years | 1.6 L |
| 9–13 years | 2.1 L for boys, 1.9 L for girls |
| 14 years and older | 2.0–2.5 L, as for adults |
A student spends most of their active day at school – a significant share of this amount should be available right there. The scale of the task nationwide: 3.9 million children study in Kazakhstan’s schools, and under the “Keleshek Mektepteri” (Schools of the Future) national project alone, 217 new schools for 460,000 places were built in 2023–2025 (in Russian) – and in each of them drinking-water provision is planned in at the fit-out stage.
Frequently asked questions about drinking water
Can a child bring their own water bottle?
Yes. The rules require the school to provide access to water, but they don’t prohibit personal bottles. A child’s own bottle doesn’t relieve the school of its duty to arrange drinking-water provision.
Is a water cooler required if there are drinking fountains?
No. The school chooses the method itself: fountains, coolers, bottled or boiled water – any permitted option that meets the requirements of item 28.
How often should you clean the cooler and change the filters?
Per the manufacturer’s instructions – that’s how item 28 is worded. In practice, coolers are sanitized every 3–6 months, and filtration cartridges are changed on the maintenance schedule, with the replacement date recorded.
How long can boiled water be kept?
No more than three hours – after that the water is replaced. This is a requirement of item 28 and the main reason boiling is rarely chosen as the primary method.
What should a rural school without running water do?
Use local drinking-water sources or delivered water (items 31–33): dedicated transport, containers labeled “drinking water”, a separate room for the reserve, and weekly disinfection of the containers.
Who inspects drinking-water provision, and what are the penalties for non-compliance?
The sanitary and epidemiological control authorities. Violations are documented in a formal order citing specific items of the rules – which is why the checklist above is organized by item: by closing each one, the school removes the grounds for remarks.
The takeaway is short: drinking-water provision is the school’s duty, not the parents’; the requirements are set out in items 26–33 of Order No. ҚР ДСМ-76; and the simplest way to meet them is stationary fountains with a protective ring. We are a drinking-fountain manufacturer in Almaty and we help schools through the whole process: selection, supply, installation, and maintenance. For questions about your own school, see our contact page.