Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart
Tokayev held a meeting of the national headquarters on flood control
coordination and elimination of consequences. The Head of State emphasized that
this year’s floods have exceeded the scale of the spring floods in 2012 and
2017, which were considered the largest in 30 years. He also stressed that the
peak of the natural disaster has not yet passed. Therefore, it is necessary to
mobilize all forces and means, including the Interior Ministry, National
Security Committee, National Guard, Armed Forces, as well as concerned citizens
and volunteers. The foremost priority is to prevent human casualties and provide
maximum support to all affected residents and regions, the President highlighted.
“I instruct the country’s government,
authorized state bodies, and regions’ governors to take a number of measures.
First, all necessary assistance to the affected citizens should be provided.
The reserves of the government and local authorities, as well as of the
Kazakhstan Khalkyna fund, should be utilized. I call on all representatives of
domestic businesses not to stay aside at this critical moment and assist to the
people. Second, it is important to prevent an increase in prices for socially
significant services and food products in the affected regions,” said the Head
of State.
President Tokayev instructed to
strengthen the predictive and analytical work, including Kazvodkhoz and Kazhydromet.
In addition, the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace
Industry, the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Water
Resources and Irrigation, and the Ministry for Emergency Situations must
develop a new information system by year-end. It should enable modeling all
possible emergencies, generating forecasts, providing recommendations, and
calculating specific actions.
“The government and local
executive bodies, primarily the regions’ governors, need to prepare for the
summer period, during which fires and other natural disasters are possible. We
can apply the experience of joint work of the Emergencies Ministry with
Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary national company in modeling floods in the eastern
regions of the country. Finally, it is necessary to develop a plan and take
effective measures to preserve flood water for agricultural needs. Local
authorities should carry out works on diversion of meltwater from residential
areas to riverbeds or reservoirs,” added the Kazakh President.
The Head of State also instructed
a review of the provisions of the government-approved Concept of water
resources management system development until 2030 and called for a thorough
examination of international experience in flood management.
