COMING UP Unicef Visit to Botswana

From 22 February 2027 to 25 February 2027 Queen Mathilde will be visiting Botswana, in her capacity of UNICEF Belgium's Honorary President.

Tom Fletcher

16 October 2026

Queen Mathilde had a meeting with Tom Fletcher, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief, at the royal palace in Brussels.

Private: Elisabeth in Madrid

According to Hola, Princess Elisabeth (24) was spotted in Madrid. She was having dinner in a restaurant, in the company of a noble family with children her own age. 

No photos were published. 

Belgium's Crown Princess is currently taking some time off, a gap year if you like, after an impressive academic career (Sint-Jan Berchmanscollege Brussels - United College of the Atlantic Wales - Royal Military Academy Brussels - Lincoln College Oxford - Kennedy School Harvard).

Next week Elisabeth celebrates her 25th birthday. We will no doubt be treated to (at least) a new portrait of our popular heir to the throne.

State Visit #19: Kazakhstan

King Philippe & Queen Mathilde are making a state visit to Kazakhstan from 11 to 14 October 2026, the first Belgian state visit ever in Central Asia. The royal couple and their delegation will be visiting Astana and Almaty. 

Sunday 11 October 2026

Departure from Melsbroek airport.

Arrival in Kazakhstan at 20:30 local time. The King & Queen were welcomed by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Monday 12 October 2026

Official welcome at the presidential palace by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Posing at the Baiterek Tower, one of Astana’s most iconic landmarks.

Visit to the National Children’s Rehabilitation Center in Astana. This visit highlights opportunities for medical cooperation between Belgium and Kazakhstan.

State dinner. 

Mathilde was wearing new diamond earrings by Kazakh jewellery brand Saltanat, so probably a gift from President Tokayev.

🇧🇪🇰🇿 Belgian State Visit to #Kazakhstan, Day 1 👑 King Philippe and Queen Mathilde are invited to a state dinner, hosted by President Tokayev. No state banquet, so no presentation of the delegations, no anthems, no speeches, no tiara for the queen. 📍 Reception House, #Astana https://t.co/TVmANTHqz1

— [Wim Dehandschutter] (@WDehandschutter) October 12, 2026

Tuesday 13 October 2026

At the National Museum President Tokayev introduces the King and Queen to Kazakhstan’s rich history and cultural traditions.

Roundtable on critical raw minerals. Kazakhstan possesses significant reserves whilst Belgium has strong expertise in processing minerals, metallurgy and recycling. Companies, universities and research centres from both countries discuss how they can combine their expertise to develop new value chains together.

Private lunch for the royal couple and the president.

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde viewed Kazakhstan’s purebred horses, a proud symbol of the country’s rich equestrian traditions, in which horses have been faithful companions of the Kazakh people for centuries.

Visit to Alem.AI and Astana Hub to discover how Kazakhstan is developing as a regional hub for artificial intelligence, innovation and digital transformation. 

Kazakh-Belgian Business Council.

Kazakhstan-Belgium Rectors' Round table.

Belgian reception with Belgians living in Kazakhstan.

Wednesday 14 October 2026

President Tokayev escorts King Philippe & Queen Mathilde to Astana airport where they board a flight for Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city.

Their first stop is the Institute of Nuclear Physics, where Philippe & Mathilde see a cyclotron supplied by Belgian company iba. This technology enables the production of radioisotopes used in medical imaging, including cancer detection. A concrete example of Belgian-Kazakh cooperation in nuclear medicine.

The King and Queen also discover Kazakhstan’s rich nomadic heritage through a horse show and a visit to a traditional yurt.

Visit to the Almaty Museum of Arts. The King and Queen explore modern and contemporary art by Kazakh and international artists, including Fernand Léger, Richard Serra and Yayoi Kusama.

The visit also features Clay Bodies, a dance performance by Brussels-based artist Ula Sickle. The performance is part of a collaboration between the Almaty Museum of Arts and KANAL-Centre Pompidou in Brussels, highlighting the artistic ties between Belgium and Kazakhstan.

And this concluded the state visit ... Boarding the flight back to Belgium which will take about 8 hours.