Water security is a key investment in the sustainable future
of Central Asia, as the region’s future depends on this resource. The topic was
discussed during one of the plenary sessions at the Astana International Forum.
In his speech, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev emphasized that sustainable
development is impossible without addressing the climate crisis. Central Asia
is among the regions most vulnerable to such changes. A coordinated regional
climate agenda, actively promoted by Kazakhstan, could be a response to this
challenge.
«In Central Asia water is a shared resource. Water is for agriculture,
not only for agriculture but also for forestry. Water is not only a shared
challenge, it’s a shared destiny and responsibility. Water security is at the
core of our shared ambitions to connect the minds and achieve a sustainable,
reliable, peaceful, prosperous future,» noted FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu.
The Astana International Forum serves as a platform not only
for discussing the key challenges of our time, but also for exploring ways to
strengthen international cooperation.
«We will now work to secure our country’s interests to the
fullest extent through international agreements, in order to ensure the optimal
use of water coming from neighboring countries. We plan to construct around 42
new reservoirs, modernize 30 existing large ones, and upgrade over 14,000
kilometers of irrigation canals,» said Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Kanat
Bozumbayev.
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