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Since becoming independent, Kazakhstan has changed the names of towns, simplified the administrative divisions it inherited and chosen a new capital, Astana. Precise information is now available on strategic sites — particularly Stepnogorsk and the environs of Semei — on uranium mines and on the most serious ecological problems. The country is counting on the support of foreign firms to clean up and revitalise its mineral and tourist wealth. However, the State has firmly regained control of the main economic sectors since 1996 and privatisation is still only partial.