In Kazakhstan, public authorities and civil society organizations have collaborated to advance implementation of the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) against Torture and Ill Treatment. Established in 2014 under an Ombudsman model, the NPM provides a wide range of powers and independence to civil society to conduct preventative visits to closed government institutions.

To date, over 2,500 such visits have been made to various closed institutions, and the mechanism has proven effective in preventing torture. The NPM has now been expanded to include children and social institutions, and its substantive recommendations have contributed to a modernization of law enforcement in Kazakhstan as well as the implementation of institutional reforms.