President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced Uzbekistan’s plan to increase water use efficiency by 25% over the next five years. The statement was made during a meeting of the board of governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Samarkand on 25 September.
“It is predicted that the average global temperature will rise by 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2040. However, under current circumstances, we are seriously concerned that this scenario could occur as early as 2030,” the head of state said.
A quarter of the world’s population is currently facing the issue of access to clean drinking water, he continued. As climate change accelerates, food shortages have become a global threat, with around 800 million people worldwide living in extreme poverty as a result.
The president emphasized that the increasing number of conflicts in various regions is disrupting traditional logistics patterns. Supply chain disruptions are driving up the costs of raw materials and consumer goods.
The population of Central Asia now exceeds 80 million, and the region’s GDP is expected to reach $700 billion within the next five years.
“At the same time, the demand for large infrastructure projects in our region is growing daily. The ongoing construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is a clear example of such major regional infrastructure projects,” Shavkat Mirziyoyev stated.
Food security and water scarcity are also becoming pressing issues for Central Asia.
“Uzbekistan has developed its own strategy to address these challenges and launched major projects aimed at saving 15 billion cubic meters of by improving water use efficiency by 25% over the next five years. However, solving the water problem will require cooperation between the countries of the region and international financial organizations,” the president stressed.
Shavkat Mirziyoyev proposed the establishment of a regional center, in collaboration with the AIIB, to promote the widespread implementation of water-saving technologies. “I believe our neighbors will support this initiative,” he added.
Currently, more than 90% of Uzbekistan’s freshwater is used for agriculture, which is significantly higher than the global average.
The first deputy head of the Ministry of Water Resources Azimjon Nazarov noted in April 2023 that the country was projected to face a shortage of 7 billion cubic meters of water by 2030, representing 25% of current water levels. Managing director of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Igor Alexeyev estimated the cost of water saving initiatives in Uzbekistan at $10 billion. The government needs to prioritize costs properly, he said.
Rising drinking water tariffs in Uzbekistan, the reduction of rice growing areas in Karakalpakstan and the suspension of irrigation water supplies from Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan underscore the worsening water crisis in Central Asia.
