A draft agreement on water and energy cooperation in Central Asia is being developed
The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation of the Republic of Kazakhstan is developing a draft agreement "On the establishment of a mechanism for water and energy cooperation between the countries of Central Asia." This is stated in the press release of the department following the results of the first half of the year in the field of water diplomacy.
Since the beginning of the year, the chairmanship of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea has been transferred to Kazakhstan. The Fund, which includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, is implementing joint interstate environmental and scientific-practical programs and projects aimed at saving the Aral Sea and improving the environmental situation in the region. This year, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation plans to launch a project to restore the Northern Aral Sea, implemented jointly with the World Bank, the department reported.
At the 86th meeting of the Interstate Coordination Water Management Commission (ICWC), Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nurzhan Nurzhigitov agreed to supply 922 million cubic meters of water to Kazakhstan via the interstate canal "Dostyk" during the irrigation season.
And at the 33rd meeting of the Shu-Talas Water Management Commission, an agreement was reached to supply 180 million cubic meters of water from Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan via the Shu River and 380 million cubic meters of water via the Talas River.
Since the beginning of the year, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation of the Republic of Kazakhstan has been negotiating with China on more than 20 rivers. Among them are three large transboundary rivers: the Ertis, Ili and Emel. Today, the parties have come to a consensus on a number of articles of the agreement on the issue of water distribution.
Kazakhstan has agreed with Uzbekistan to install meters that will allow calculating the exact volume of water consumed by both countries. At the same time, Kazakhstan will install meters on the territory of Uzbekistan, and the Uzbek side will install them on our territory.
This year, Kazakhstan joined the UN Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses. The Convention is an international document that ensures the equitable distribution of transboundary rivers, lakes and associated groundwater, and regulates their use.
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