ASTANA — Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov met with leaders of Central Asian delegations on Sep. 18 during the first session of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea, chaired by Kazakhstan, reported the Prime Minister’s press service.
The Aral Sea, once the largest inland lake in the world, has shrunk tremendously over the past decades. Photo credit: adb.org.
The meeting focused on the joint use of transboundary water resources and efforts to address ecological and socio-economic challenges in the Aral Sea basin.
“President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has stressed that saving the Aral Sea should be a priority for long-term international cooperation. The fund’s key mission is the comprehensive and rational use and protection of Central Asia’s water and energy resources, considering their socio-economic, energy, irrigation, and environmental importance,” said Bektenov.
Kazakh PM called for the development of a comprehensive and mutually beneficial water and energy cooperation mechanism for Central Asia, considering all parties’ interests. Photo credit: primeminister.kz
Despite ongoing initiatives, the fund faces the challenge of uniting interested states to address the growing water scarcity in the Aral Sea basin, worsened by climate change.
Bektenov underscored the importance of regional cooperation and outlined the fund’s priority tasks during Kazakhstan’s chairmanship, as set by the member states’ leaders.
He called for the development of a comprehensive and mutually beneficial water and energy cooperation mechanism for Central Asia, considering all parties’ interests. This includes implementing the latest digital technologies and using satellite remote sensing data to boost cooperation and conserve significant water resources.
The efforts will include developing and implementing a unified automated system for accounting, monitoring, managing, and distributing water resources in the Aral Sea basin. These measures aim to meet the region’s needs and prevent energy shortages in the fall and winter and irrigation water shortages in the summer.
Another critical priority is finalizing improvements to the fund’s organizational structure and legal framework, a task currently being undertaken by an expert working group.
