law program for over $7 million launched in September 2020. The Kazakh Supreme Court and the Ministry of Information and Public Development work closely with the USAID as part of the program to improve public trust and demonstrate greater alignment with internationally recognized standards. In 2020, the country was ranked 62nd in the Rule of Law Index, climbing three positions since 2015. Ethnic diversity Kazakhstan supports co-existence of different cultures. The Assembly of People of Kazakhstan supports nearly 200 centres where children and adults can study 30 different languages. In 2015, the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan (APK) introduced a Day of Gratitude as a new holiday of Kazakhstan. The proposal to establish it was delivered by President Nursultan Nazarbayev. The Day of Gratitude is celebrated on 1 March and marks the historic past and multi-ethnic unity of the country. 59.2% of the Kazakhstan population is Kazakh, 29.6% is Russian, while 10.2% comprises Germans, Tatars, Ukrainians, Uzbek and Uyghurs. Representatives of more than 140 ethnic groups live in Kazakhstan and some 818 ethnic and cultural associations operate under the auspices of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan. Children's rights Kazakhstan's Human Rights Commissioner for Children's Rights and UNICEF Representative for Kazakhstan adopted a Statement of Intentions on Cooperation. The parties agreed to take necessary actions to develop an independent system of monitoring of ensuring children's rights in Kazakhstan. The Kazakhstan 2050 Strategy places high emphasis on the protection of childhood. Kazakhstan adopted over 90 laws and other normative acts aimed at protecting children's rights. Kazakhstan is a party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Commissioner for Human Rights The institution of the Commissioner for human rights (Kazakhstan's Ombudsman) was established on September 19, 2002 by the President's Decree. The Commissioner and his associated organization, the National Center for Human Rights, are empowered to investigate human rights issues in the government per the decree of President Nazarbayev. National Council of Public Trust Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev established the National Council of Public Trust in July 2019 as a dialogue platform for government to be more responsive to the public. The Council convened its first meeting on September 6, 2019. The Council meeting was focused on the following topics: decriminalization of libel, reform of the penitentiary system and the judiciary, gender balance and women empowerment. In May 2020, President Tokayev signed four important laws that were