On 21-24 August 2023, Almaty hosted the first meeting of the Council of National Coordinators (CNC) of the SCO member states under Kazakh chairmanship.

National Coordinators from all nine member states, representatives of the SCO Secretariat and the Executive Committee of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) took part in the event in person. For the first time, the Islamic Republic of Iran was represented as a full member state. The SCO Secretariat delegation at the talks was led by Deputy Secretary General Nurlan Yermekbayev.

They discussed a wide range of issues related to the implementation of the decisions of the SCO Heads of State Council, preparations for the next meeting of the SCO Heads of Government (Prime Ministers) Council and other official events, implementation of initiatives aimed at intensifying practical cooperation in the political, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres. Special attention was paid to further enhancing the organization's efficiency, improving interaction with the observer states, SCO dialogue partners and international associations.

The delegations visited a number of sights of Almaty that were declared by decision of the SCO Heads of State Council to be the cultural and tourist capital of the organisation for 2023-2024.

A protocol was signed following the meeting.