BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 8. Central Asian
countries discussed the modernization of water infrastructure and
the expansion of water-saving technologies in the Amu Darya and Syr
Darya basins.
The information was reported by the press service of the Turkmen
government following a high-level meeting held yesterday in
Turkmenistan’s Avaza National Tourist Zone, attended by heads of
relevant ministries and water-sector experts from Central Asian
countries.
The participants focused on strengthening interstate
coordination on the use of the region’s two largest rivers, with
particular attention to water supplies for agriculture and
ecosystem protection, the press service said.
The meeting addressed the wider use of drip irrigation, canal
lining to reduce water losses, and digital systems for monitoring
flows in transboundary rivers.
The participants also discussed joint environmental projects
aimed at preventing soil salinization and combating
desertification, while considering competing water needs for
hydropower generation upstream and irrigated agriculture downstream
along the Amu Darya and Syr Darya.
Particular attention was given to the International Fund for
Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) and the Interstate Commission for Water
Coordination (ICWC). Participants discussed ways to improve the
effectiveness of the two regional mechanisms amid growing
environmental pressures.
The meeting also highlighted Turkmenistan’s proposal to
establish a Regional Center for Climate Change Technologies in
Central Asia, according to the press service.
The initiative is intended to create a regional scientific and
technological platform to address the effects of climate change on
populations and agriculture, the report said.
The discussions come as water availability is becoming an
increasingly important economic issue for Central Asia, where
agriculture remains heavily dependent on irrigation and water
resources are shared across national borders.
