Dushanbe, Tajikistan, May 12, 2021 – The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) launched a new Regional Water and Vulnerable Environment Activity. This five-year, $24 million activity will work in all five Central Asian countries and Afghanistan to strengthen regional cooperation on the management of shared water resources in the Syr Darya and Amu Darya river basins.
In his opening remarks, Keith E. Simmons, USAID/Tajikistan Acting Mission Director, underscored that managing water resources in Central Asia and Afghanistan is a struggle due to limited water supplies, growing populations, and an increased threat posed by a changing climate. “For the last decade, USAID successfully worked with the Government of Tajikistan to address water challenges by strengthening regional cooperation and building the capacity of stakeholders to take incremental, practical steps toward the wise use, conservation, and sustainability of the most precious natural resource – water. This new USAID activity will provide more opportunities for promoting stability, economic prosperity, and healthy ecosystems for the people of Central Asia and Afghanistan,” stated Mr. Simmons.
Representatives from the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, the Ministry of Agriculture, the State Committee on Environmental Protection, the Agency for Land Reclamation and Irrigation, regional water organizations, civil society, private sector, and academic and research institutions participated in the activity’s virtual event. They discussed national and regional challenges facing the management of shared water resources from the water-energy-food nexus perspective and provided their input on the next steps.
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USAID is the world’s premier international development agency and a catalytic actor driving development results. For more information, visit: https://www.usaid.gov/central-asia-regional and https://www.usaid.gov/tajikistan, and USAID’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/USAIDCentralAsia
