| Aigul Japarova | |
|---|---|
| Айгүл Жапарова | |
 Japarova in 2022 | |
| First Lady of Kyrgyzstan | |
| Current | |
| Assumed role 28 January 2021 | |
| President | Sadyr Japarov |
| Preceded by | Aigul Jeenbekova |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Aigul Asanbaeva (Айгүл Асанбаева) 1973 (age 50–51) Tüp District, Issyk-Kul Region, Kyrgyz SSR, Soviet Union |
| Spouse |
Sadyr Japarov (m. 1991) |
| Residence | Ala Archa State Residence |
| Alma mater | Arabaev Kyrgyz State University |
Aigul Japarova (Kyrgyz: Айгүл Жапарова, née Asanbaeva), as the wife of President Sadyr Japarov, is the incumbent First Lady of Kyrgyzstan and she is around five to six years his junior.
Biography
She was born in a village in the Tüp District on 14 November 1973. She studied at a medical school, then received a higher education at the Arabaev Kyrgyz State University. Asanbayeva lived with her children abroad for three years during her husband's exile, mainly in Poland and Russia. In an interview, she claimed that she turned to President Almazbek Atambayev's wife, Raisa, for help, when her husband and son were detained by the security forces at the Kyrgyz border. She and Japarov are the parents of four children, one of whom died on 26 August 2019 in an accident.
Tenure as First Lady
During her husband's acting presidency, she volunteered to help volunteers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in Kyrgyzstan. In June 2021, she joined her husband on his official visit to Turkey in her first such foreign trip.
Perception
She has been compared to Mayram Akayeva, the wife of the first president Askar Akayev. It has also been noted that her father has been working at the Kumtor Gold Mine for many years, a place which Japarov for many years has advocated for its nationalization.
References
- "Супруга Жапарова Айгуль: Садыр – не романтик". Кактус (in Russian). 11 January 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
- ^ "Первые леди Кыргызстана. Вспоминаем, какими они были + Айгуль Жапарова — Asiais.ru". asiais.ru. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
- "Что известно о супруге Садыра Жапарова". ia-centr.ru.
- OSMONALIEVA, Baktygul (5 November 2020). "Second wave of COVID-19: Sadyr Japarov's wife to help volunteers". 24.kg. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
- "Kyrgyzstan: First lady's prominence sets tongues wagging | Eurasianet". eurasianet.org.
- ""Не всем дано стать первой леди страны". Что известно о супруге Садыра Жапарова | Новости Таджикистана ASIA-Plus". asiaplustj.info.