89th MEETING OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION FOR WATER COORDINATION OF CENTRAL ASIA
On April 5, 2025, the 89th meeting of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (ICWC) of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan was held in Samarkand. The meeting was organized by the Uzbek side and coincided with the Samarkand Climate Forum.
The meeting was conducted under the chairmanship of ICWC member from Uzbekistan Sh. Khamraev, with the participation of ICWC members from Kazakhstan, Mr. N. Nurjigitov and Turkmenistan, Mr. D. Gendjiyev. D. Abdurazokzoda (by proxy) represented Tajikistan. The meeting was attended by the heads of executive bodies, such as M. Mahramov, BWO AmuDarya; O. Kholkhujaev, BWO SyrDarya; D. Ziganshina, SIC ICWC; U. Nazarov, Secretariat, and invited persons. Additionally, A. Orazbay, Chairman of EC IFAS, S. Bekmaganbetov, Deputy Chairman of EC IFAS, and N. Sheraliev, representative of Uzbekistan in EC IFAS took part in the meeting.
The following items were on the meeting's agenda:
- Results of the use of water withdrawal limits/quotas and the operation regimes of reservoirs in the Amu Darya and Syr Darya River basins during the non-growing season 2024-2025.
- Approval of the country-specific water withdrawal limits and forecast operation regimes of reservoir cascades in the Syr Darya and Amu Darya River basins for the growing season 2025.
- Progress on the tasks arising from the summits of the Heads of IFAS founder states.
- Agenda and venue of the regular 90th ICWC meeting.
On the first and second agenda items, BWO Amu Darya and BWO Syr Darya presented reports on the use of water withdrawal limits and operation regimes of the reservoir cascades during the non-growing season 2024-2025 for the Amu Darya and Syr Darya River basins. Also, they reported on approval of country water withdrawal limits and provided forecast operation regimes of the reservoir cascades for the upcoming growing season 2025.
On the third item, D. Ziganshina, Director of SIC ICWC, reported on the efforts undertaken by water management organizations and ICWC executive bodies to implement the proposals and initiatives outlined at the Summits of the Heads of IFAS founder states in Turkmenbashi (2018) and Dushanbe (2023).
After discussions, decisions were made on all agenda items, and the meeting's protocol was signed by the parties.
In recognition of significant contribution to interstate water management, the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mr. N. Nurjigitov, the Chairman of the State Committee for Water Management of Turkmenistan, Mr. D. Gendjiyev, and the Chairman of the Executive Committee of IFAS, Mr. A. Orazbay were awarded with the badge of honor "Excellence in Water Management of the Republic of Uzbekistan."
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