Central Asia Prepares for IFAS Heads of State Council
A meeting of the Board of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) was held in Astana, chaired by Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov. The meeting brought together deputy prime ministers and relevant ministers from Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. The main goal was to finalize agreements for the IFAS Heads of State Council, which Astana will host on April 22.
One of the central topics of discussion was the digitalization of water metering. Olzhas Bektenov proposed that countries in the region move from declarations to tangible control tools and implement a unified system for monitoring and allocating resources in the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river basins. Joint digital metering will eliminate discrepancies in water consumption volumes and will serve as a foundation for trust between neighbors.
Kazakhstan, concluding its chairmanship of IFAS, advocates for the creation of a new legal framework. The proposed Central Asian Framework Convention on Water Management should enshrine three key principles: rational use of water resources; prevention of transboundary damage; and free exchange of hydrological information.
For Turkmenistan, as for other downstream countries, the effectiveness of IFAS is of great importance. The upcoming April summit in Astana should serve as a reset point for the Fund, transforming it into a modern structure capable of making and, most importantly, implementing rigorous technological decisions for the sake of the region's environmental future.
