57th ICWC MEETING
The 57 th regular meeting of the Interstate Coordination Water Commission of Central Asia (ICWC) chaired by Sh.R. Khamraev, Deputy Minister, the Head of Main water management department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources Management of the Republic of Uzbekistan, was held on 11 May 2011 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
The following items were discussed in the agenda:
1. Regarding results of vegetation period 2010-2011, the water withdrawal limits and of the operation modes of the reservoirs cascade in the Amudarya and Syrdarya basins during the vegetation period 2011 (responsible: BWO "Amudarya" and BWO "Syrdarya").
2. Regarding approval of the Report on the "Central Asian Regional Water Information Base (CAREWIB)" project - Phase II (submitted for consideration by the SIC ICWC)
3. Regarding agenda and venue of the next 58 ICWC meeting.
The appropriate decisions were made on all items of the agenda.
2nd ISTANBUL WATER FORUM
In 2009 the 5th World Water Forum was organized by Turkey in Istanbul which was successfully held from 16 till 22 March. One of the main outcomes of the 5th World Water Forum is the Declaration “An Istanbul Perspective on Regional Water Challenges and Solutions". Within implementation of such Declaration the Turkish Government initiated the 2nd Istanbul International Water Forum which was held on 3-5, May 2011, aiming to provide a platform for greater coordination and collaboration amongst the key international and local water stakeholders In and Around Turkey. The focal regions of the 2nd Istanbul International Water Forum were the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Turkey.
On 3 May 2011 the Forum was opened by Prof.Dr. Veysel Eroglu, Minister of Environment and Forestry; Dr. Kadir Topbash, Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor; Ismail Ugur, DSI Director General; Prof.Dr.Ahmet Mete Saatchi, 5th WWF Vice Secretary General.
The Programme of the 2nd Istanbul Water Forum included 6 main themes (considered within the thematic sessions):
- Regional Technical Cooperation on Water
- Water for Energy
- Agricultural Water Management
- Global Climate Change and Water
- Urban Water Management
- Water Resources Management and Water Culture
Three high level panels were also organized to synthesize the thematic discussions:
“Integrated Water Resources Management” Panel: Six panelists took part in this panel. Mr. Vadim Sokolov, Deputy Director of SIC ICWC, representative of Central Asia, showed perspectives to solve the priority social and environmental problems in the Central Asian region, using the IWRM implementation experience in the Fergana Valley as an example. The economic benefit maximization of water use in some economic sectors, as was emphasized in the panel's resulting documents, is unacceptable without taking into account the sustainable balance between social and environmental needs of each basin.
“Linking water for food and energy” panel: Six panelists took part in this panel. Prof. Yarash Pulatov, Director General of TajNIIGIM, the representative of Central Asia, noted that the food security and the energy security both are very important for Tajikistan as national priorities. He emphasized that the top leaders of the country are aimed to develop negotiation process to come to agreement with all countries in the region about mutual beneficial ways for further water development. Regarding the discussion on the energy sector's development ways, Prof. Pulatov told that Tajikistan is implementing the Program on construction of small hydropower stations in some regions to solve local energy problems, however the small hydropower stations can not solve the main energy problems in the country within the framework of the state energy policy.
"Water services for urban areas" panel: Representatives from Central Asia didn't take part in this panel.
A number of side events ("Water policy and women", "Strategy on adaptation to climate change in the region of Red Sea and Gulf of Aden", and other) and four restricted target round tables (concerning the problems of Turkey, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Middle East) were held during the Forum.
The restricted target round table on Central Asia was dedicated to "Agricultural challenges with food security focus - regional and national prospects". The experts invited by the Turkish side took part in a roundtable discussion: Mammed Asadov (JSC Land reclamation and water management, Azerbaijan), Alexandr Mindorashvili and Tamar Khmaladze (Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Agriculture, Georgia), Mukhtar Jakenov (Ministry of Agriculture, Kazakhstan), Ekaterina Sakhvaeva and Iliya Domashov (State Committee on Water Management and Land Reclamation, and SPA BIOM, Kyrgyzstan), Yarash Pulatov and Ali Karaev (TajNIIGIM, and SPA VODOKONSALT, Tajikistan), Oleg Guchgeldiev, Independent Expert on agro-economy (Turkmenistan), Ganna Grinko and Ludmila Kalitka (Ministry of Ecology and Nature Resources, Ukraine). The invited expert of Uzbekistan - Mr. Vokhid Akhmadjonov (MAWRM) - didn't come to the Forum. Mr. Islam Karimov, Consul of the Embassy of Uzbekistan, was refused for participation in the Forum because he wasn't in the invitation list. Also three regional experts took part in the round table: Prof. Bart Schults, Honorary President of ICID (UNESCO-IHE), John Munoz (FAO) and Vadim Sokolov (SIC ICWC). From the Turkish side the employees of the Department on Central Asia of the 5WWF Secretariat took part in the round table meeting: Ms. Rezan Khasanbeshoglu, Ms. Gonka Un and Mr. Aktash Kaner, the Head of Department. Prof. Turan from the Istanbul University was a moderator of the round table meeting.
Because the dispute theme "Food Security" is related to the identical priority problems in every state of our region there were no controversial questions during the discussion. All the speakers emphasized the existing challenges: populaion growth, climate change, low efficiency of water management for irrigation, decreasing of irrigated land productivity, negative impact of global processes on the global food market. Participants reached a complete consensus about the need of state support to irrigated agriculture, the need to improve the legal framework, financial stability of farmers, and to improve training and advisory services, and the need to have new technologies, etc. Suggestions to develop regional cooperation and specialization in matters of food security have also found a common understanding and support. A little discussion was related to the economic incentives issues namely the approaches "water charges" or "fees for water services."
For more information (in Turkish and English), please visit the Forum website: www.iusf.org.tr
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