News
The second phase of the European Union funded “Central Asia Nexus Dialogue Project: Fostering Water, Energy and Food Security Nexus and Multi-Sector Investment” is a continuation of the first phase of the project which is implemented by the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC).
This project is the part of the Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme in five regions of the world with financial support from the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The first phase of the project was implemented in five countries of Central Asia (CA) in the period from December 2016 to December 2019 years in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and with the support of the Executive Committee of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (EC IFAS), as well as a number of relevant ministries responsible for WEF issues.
TARGET GROUPS:
WEF related line ministries and experts, local authorities, CA Academic Network, International Financial Institutions (IFIs).
OVERALL OBJECTIVE:
Institutionalisation of WEF Nexus approach in national and regional governance structures and investment decisions for water, energy and food security in Central Asia.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
-
To apply the WEF Nexus approach in planning, policy making and practical implementation;
- To increase interest of public and private investors to support Nexus based projects in CA.
Instagram Twitter
|
IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGMENTS
To ensure coordination and alignment of activities during Phase II of the Project, the Regional Steering Committee (RSC) established in Phase I will continue to operate and a Technical Working Group (TWG) will be established for the small-scale transboundary demonstration project.
The Network of Academic Society (NAS) consisting of representatives of universities, professional development institutes and training centers that has been operating in Central Asia since 2013 with the support of the World Bank and CAREC, will be involved as an expert support to exchange academic knowledge, research development, modern methods and technologies in the field of sustainable management and use of natural resources.
The Global Nexus Secretariat (GNS) is a coordinating body for implementation of Nexus projects in different regions of the world. It supports exchange of knowledge and experience among project teams, coordinates development of methodological materials and tools required for planning, evaluation and implementation of Nexus projects.
CAREC, as an implementer of the Nexus Dialogue in CA Project, will ensure that the objectives of Phase II of the Nexus project are achieved, interested partners are informed and involved, as well as that project co-financing commitments are met.
Demo projects manifest the most important element of the Project and serve the platform for showcasing the Nexus approach in practice through the application of analytical products and finding technical solutions ensuring the WEF security. Based on the undertaken efforts and formulated solutions applicable to the demo projects, the investment proposals will be elaborated as the main Project’s output and offered for public, private and/or IFI financing.
Remarkably, the four selected demo projects address a variety of WEF security challenges:
1) Transboundary demo project between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan “Tuyamuyun Hydroelectric Complex”;
3) National demo project in the Kyrgyz Republic “Institutionalization of the WEF Nexus approach in the agricultural sector”;
Another equally important component of the Project is an Interactive Nexus Game. The game was developed by the Polish organization Centre for Systems Solutions in collaboration with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis and the Sustainable Energy for All Initiative. The game represents a facilitated process of playing five different scenarios on water, energy and food resources management between downstream and upstream countries. Each participant has a role and not only learns how to defend the issues of their sector, but also to hear other participants, argue their proposals and find compromises. The full Nexus Game takes up to 5 hours and is played using a map, colored tokens and cards.
The game vividly illustrates well-known problems and potential conflicts between upstream and downstream countries. During one of the scenarios, for example, participants can put themselves in the shoes of downstream countries that were not willing to tolerate water pollution from upstream countries.
Expected Results
-
Regional multi-sectoral Nexus dialogue is strengthened with support of the Regional Steering Committee and Technical Working Group established for the transboundary demonstration project;
- One transboundary and three small-scale demonstration projects are implemented to serve as pilot sites to prepare:
- institutional and socio-economic assessments for all demonstration projects;
- simulation analysis (cost-benefit or trade off) for two demonstration projects;
- technical solutions for three demonstration projects;
- Investment-ready proposals for two demonstration projects are developed and submitted to potential investors;
- Analytical and planning tools relevant for supporting Nexus based decisions are tested in Central Asia;
- Capacity of the WEF line ministries and national experts on the application of the Nexus tools for designing investment projects enhanced;
- The vision to institutionalise the Nexus approach in national and regional governance structures and investment decisions is improved.
Achievements to date:
1. To tackle the sedimentation issue at Tuyamuyun Hydro Complex (THC) (UZB-TKM)
2. To improve energy efficiency at pumping stations in Sughd region (TAJ)
3. To pilot a closed root system for planting saxaul seedlings on the dried bottom of the Aral Sea (KAZ)
4· To include WEF Nexus in the Agriculture Development Strategy of the Kyrgyz Republic for 2021-2025
· Initial concepts of investment projects developed for:
1. Technical solutions for the removal of sediment from the THC reservoir and the production of pilot products from sediment (brick, foam block, facing tiles), profit and loss analysis;
2. Smart and energy-efficient equipment at pumping stations in the Sughd region, Tajikistan;
3. Afforestation of the dried bottom of the Aral Sea;
· 15 universities and public administration academiesfrom Central Asian countries involved to study the WEF Nexus approach and 7 memoranda of cooperation signed;
· Three dialogue platforms function: Regional Steering Committee and two Technical Working Groups.
- Global Nexus Secretariat
- The Executive Board of the International Fund for saving the Aral Sea in the Republic of Kazakhstan
- USAID Water and Vulnerable Environment Activity
- The World Bank project “Laboratory of Innovative Solutions for the Water Sector of Central Asia” implemented within the framework of the Central Asia Water and Energy Program (CAWEP)
Project manager – Ms. Ludmilla Kiktenko
E-mail: lkiktenko@carececo.org
Tel.: +7 727 265 43 33 (ext. 107)
Project Specialist – Aizhan Kossantayeva
Tel.: +7(727) 265 43 33 (ext. 151)
E-mail: empspecialist@carececo.org
Coordinator for development of Community of Practice and Network of Academia Society – Zamira Zholdaskyzy
Tel.: +7 727 265 43 34 (ext. 277)
E-mail: empspecialist1@carececo.org
PR and Info Specialist – Botagoz Smagulova
Tel.: +7 727 265 43 34 (ext. 170)
E-mail: empinfo@carececo.org
Programme Assistant – Aisha Mukhamedrakhim
Tel.: +7(727) 265 43 33 (ext. 151)
E-mail: empassistant@carececo.org