2009 PRESS RELEASES
USAID SUPPORTS TALKS FOR A REGIONAL WATER AGREEMENT IN CENTRAL ASIA
October 20, 2009, Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Ambassador Ken Gross opened a conference on regional water issues along with Minister of Land Reclamation and Water Recourse Mr. Saidi Yokubzod and Mr. Miroslav Jenca, Special Representative of the Secretary General responsible for the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy in Central Asia (UNRCCA). The conference was attended by policy makers and diplomats from all five Central Asian republics in order to continue the process of finding a comprehensive, long-term, and equitable agreement on the use of the regions water resources. The conference was funded by the UNRCCA, the United States Agency for International Development, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Speaking at the event, Ambassador Gross said that “Water resources bind all people in Central Asia together as much as do their cultural, familial, and trade ties that have developed over many generations. Although the issues you are to discuss today are complex and sensitive, I am glad that there is now a renewed commitment to find a long-term solution to a truly regional dilemma.” The UNRCCA, together with two regional organizations – the International Foundation to Save the Aral Sea (IFAS) and the Eurasian Economic Community (EURasEC) has been working with the five Central Asian countries to form an agreement on the economic terms of use and trade of water and energy in the region. Both are highly valued resources that are shared across borders that have provided a source of tension in the region since the earliest days of independence.
This is the third widely-attended event sponsored by the UNRCCA to bring together country-level experts and policy makers and outside technical experts to examine ways forward for a multi-party long-term agreement on regional water management. The first was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan in April 2009 and was followed up with a July meeting in Ashgabat. This multi-stage approach is designed to lead to an agreement that will help ensure security, prosperity, and health for all people in Central Asia.
This conference was partially funded by grant to UNRCCA from the United Sates Agency for International Development (USAID) and is one of the many assistance projects made possible by the American people through the USAID. Since 1993, the American people through USAID have provided more than $300 million in programs that support Tajikistan’s democratic institutions, health care, education, and economic growth.
