Climate Change - The Times Of Central Asia

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Rogun Dam

Inside Tajikistan’s Rogun Dam, the Mega-Project Built to Power a Nation

“Building a hydroelectric power plant is a responsibility for our country!” Displayed in Tajik at the entrance to the Rogun construction site, deep in the mountains of Tajikistan, the slogan captures the significance of what has become the most ambitious infrastructure project in the country’s history - and one of the largest hydropower developments in the world. Nearly fifty years after the Soviet authorities launched construction in 1976, the mega-project is finally entering a decisive phase. Long delayed by the collapse of the Soviet Union, the civil war of the 1990s, and the economic struggles of Central Asia’s poorest country, the project has gained renewed momentum over the past decade. After a two-hour drive through the mountains east of Dushanbe, the scale of the site gradually comes into view. Located more than 1,300 meters above sea level, Rogun is far more than a dam. The complex includes dozens of kilometers of tunnels, diversion canals, underground power stations, and an extensive network of technical infrastructure carved into the rock. [caption id="attachment_49947" align="aligncenter" width="1365"] Turbines in the process of being built[/caption] Once completed, according to current project plans, the structure will rise to 335 meters, making it the tallest dam in the world, Tajik officials proudly note. For now, it stands at approximately 140 meters. “This is where the Vakhsh River flows,” says Anvar Rahmonov, Production Director at Rogun HPP, standing on a ridge overlooking the future reservoir. [caption id="attachment_49948" align="aligncenter" width="2048"] Anvar Rahmonov, Production Director at Rogun HPP[/caption] Fed by glaciers in the Pamir Mountains, the river is diverted through underground galleries that currently power two 600-megawatt turbines. Below, dozens of trucks move continuously across the site while workers labor across different sections of the project. The deep blue waters of the future reservoir - designed to hold more than 13 billion cubic meters of water - contrast sharply with the surrounding red-earth mountains and the constant movement of heavy machinery. The project remains far from complete. Four additional turbines are still under construction. Once fully operational, the plant will have a total installed capacity of 3,600 megawatts, according to Tajik project officials, comparable to that of a nuclear power station. Ending Chronic Energy Shortages For a country of just over ten million people that continues to face electricity shortages every winter, the stakes are enormous. Despite possessing one of Central Asia’s largest hydropower potentials, Tajikistan still suffers from a chronic energy deficit. During the winter months, the country lacks roughly a quarter of the electricity needed to meet domestic demand, resulting in rationing and power restrictions across much of rural Tajikistan. “Thanks to this project, Tajikistan will be able to achieve energy independence,” says Andres Ricaldi, an engineer with the Franco-Belgian consultancy Tractebel, which is involved in the project. In the substation, a diagram of the power lines supplying the different regions is shown. [caption id="attachment_49946" align="aligncenter" width="2048"] Substation zone[/caption] Yet Rogun’s ambitions extend well beyond the domestic market. “The meaning of the Rogun Dam has changed,” explains Artemy Kalinovsky,...

Water Security

Dushanbe Water Talks Put Tajikistan’s Climate Diplomacy in Focus

Conference-related events began in Dushanbe on Monday, May 25, as Tajikistan hosts the Fourth High-Level International Conference on the International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development,” 2018-2028. The week gives Tajikistan a fresh stage for a role it has built for years: using water, climate risk, and glacier protection as its clearest route into global diplomacy. President Emomali Rahmon gave the week an early political signal when he met three senior U.N. officials in Dushanbe: Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, U.N. Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCAP; Retno Marsudi, U.N. Under-Secretary-General and Special Envoy on Water; and Tshilidzi Marwala, Rector of the United Nations University and U.N. Under-Secretary-General. Their arrival tied the conference directly to the Dushanbe Water Process, a platform Tajikistan has used to keep water on the international agenda. The Tajik presidential press service said 14 U.N. resolutions on water resources have been adopted at Tajikistan’s initiative. For a small, mountainous country with limited geopolitical weight, that record has become a useful diplomatic asset. Tajikistan can convene governments, U.N. agencies, development banks, and water experts around a topic shaped by its geography. The conference runs from May 25 to 28, with Monday set aside for forums, side events, and regional consultations. The main high-level sessions are set to take place on May 26 and 27 at the Kohi Somon Complex, followed by field visits on May 28. Asia-Plus reported that more than 2,500 participants were expected, including representatives from 31 countries and 33 international organizations and financial institutions. The agenda links Tajikistan’s national concerns to a wider U.N. timetable. The Dushanbe events are designed as a preparatory step before the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, now scheduled for December 8-10 in Abu Dhabi, and co-hosted by the United Arab Emirates and Senegal. Tajik officials are also presenting the process as a bridge towards 2028, when the Water Action Decade reaches its final year. Tajikistan has spent more than two decades building this diplomatic niche. The International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development,” 2018-2028 began on World Water Day in 2018 and ends on World Water Day in 2028. The Dushanbe Water Process was then shaped as a regular follow-up platform, including for voluntary commitments made under the U.N. Water Action Agenda. That structure has given Tajikistan repeated opportunities to host, frame, and guide discussion rather than appear only as a country seeking aid. Tajikistan’s glaciers, rivers, hydropower system, and mountain communities all face pressure from climate change. The U.N. glaciers initiative has put new attention on glacier retreat, and Tajikistan has pushed glacier preservation as part of its global water agenda. In Central Asia, melting glaciers and shifting river flows affect more than one country; they shape energy supply, irrigation, disaster risk, and food security. Water also connects Tajikistan to its neighbors. The region’s major rivers cross borders, and upstream water use affects downstream farms and cities. Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan hold much of the mountain headwater geography, while Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan depend heavily on reliable flows for...

Water crisis

Tajikistan and UN to Host Water Crisis Conference in Dushanbe

Tajikistan and the United Nations will co-host the 4th High-Level International Conference on the International Decade for Action "Water for Sustainable Development " 2018-2028 next week, as Central Asia and other regions face increasing water scarcity because of climate change, higher consumption, and other factors. Delegates to the May 25-28 water conference in Dushanbe include government officials, scientists, executives from financial institutions and civil society members from around the world. The goal of creating “sustainable” water resources is especially critical in Central Asia, where there is growing concern that shortages could threaten public health and stir tension between upstream and downstream countries. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, for example, are in mountainous regions and have relatively significant water resources that they share with neighboring countries. However, the resources are under strain. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, in turn, rely on the cross-border water supply that flows downstream. Central Asian governments have begun joint projects on water infrastructure to avoid the kind of tensions that emerged in the past. The Dushanbe conference is another step in that process, even though the event is global in perspective. Tajik diplomats have held briefings in Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia and other countries to promote the conference, describing Tajikistan as a leader in “water diplomacy” as the world faces a water crisis that is increasingly evident in floods, droughts, pollution and melting glaciers. Dushanbe has already hosted several international conferences on water. Saidjon Shafizoda, spokesman for Tajikistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a briefing in the Tajik capital on Wednesday that the conference can help accelerate innovation and mobilize funding for the “sustainable and inclusive” management of water, the state Khovar news agency reported. Organizers say more than 2,500 people are expected to participate.

Climate Change

Uzbekistan and China to Develop Early Warning Systems for Dust Storms

Uzbekistan and China have agreed to expand cooperation on environmental protection, including the development of early warning systems for dust and sandstorms, according to Uzbekistan’s National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change. The agreement was discussed during a meeting between Aziz Abdukhakimov, Advisor to the President of Uzbekistan on environmental issues, and Huang Runqiu, China’s Minister of Ecology and Environment. The talks took place on the sidelines of a regional environmental summit. Both sides noted that cooperation between the two countries in environmental protection has been expanding and becoming more practical. Officials focused on joint efforts to address environmental challenges, introduce modern technologies, and strengthen scientific collaboration. Uzbekistan expressed appreciation for China’s support in establishing the Central Asian Regional Research Center for Combating Desertification and Developing Desert Economies at Green University, created with the participation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The center is expected to serve as a platform for research, training, and the development of solutions to land degradation. According to Huang Runqiu, cooperation between the two countries has already produced concrete results. He noted that 11 waste-to-energy plants are currently being built in Uzbekistan by Chinese investors, reflecting what he described as “a high level of trust” and effective bilateral cooperation. The Uzbek side proposed several new areas for collaboration, including studying China’s use of satellite systems for climate monitoring, gaining experience in tracking dust and sandstorms, and exploring the work of China’s national environmental monitoring centers. Other proposals included organizing a joint international forum on ecology and establishing a shared laboratory to monitor air and water quality. China expressed support for these initiatives and confirmed its readiness to move toward practical implementation. The two sides discussed creating a joint laboratory for environmental monitoring and expanding scientific research, including cooperation with international organizations such as the World Meteorological Organization. A key outcome of the meeting was an agreement to apply China’s experience in early warning systems for dust and sandstorms in Uzbekistan. These systems are expected to improve preparedness and response to environmental risks. China also offered to send scientists and experts to Uzbekistan to support training and capacity building, while inviting Uzbek specialists to China for knowledge exchange.

Water Scarcity

Opinion: As Water Runs Short, Uzbekistan Faces New Migration Pressure

In the 21st century, Uzbekistan is no longer just confronting an ecological crisis - it is on the verge of socio-political transformations driven by water. As agricultural lands are being degraded and river flows are decreasing, the country is now facing what experts describe as a “slow-onset disaster”: internal climate migration. The roots of this crisis go back to the tragedy of the Aral Sea, once the world’s fourth-largest lake, which has shrunk to roughly 10% of its original area since the 1960s largely due to Soviet-era irrigation projects. The human toll has been enormous: not only is agriculture in decline, but the lives of the people living in the Aral Sea region have been profoundly altered. Each year, storms lift an estimated 15 million to 75 million tons of sand, dust, and salt from the dried Aral seabed, spreading it across Uzbekistan and the wider region. Now, another challenge is looming - the water supply. In 2018, 79,942 internally displaced people were reported in Uzbekistan. The dwindling water supply and the threat to agro-ecosystems are creating a new generation of climate migrants. The number of climate-related displacements is expected to reach 200,000 in the coming years. The Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, Uzbekistan’s hydrological lifelines, are under growing strain from climate change, inefficient irrigation, and transboundary water-distribution pressures. Experts warn that the country's water deficit could reach 7 billion cubic meters by 2030, and 15 billion cubic meters by 2050. The World Bank predicts that Uzbekistan's economy could shrink by 10% by 2050 if no meaningful action is taken to adapt to climate change. Now, another new factor threatens to accelerate this trend. The Taliban government in Afghanistan is building the Qosh Tepa Canal, a 285-kilometer irrigation project that will divert water from the Amu Darya River. According to Rieks Bosch, an international expert on natural resources and economics, the canal will divert 20% of the Amu Darya's water, which will exacerbate water shortages in some parts of Uzbekistan and negatively affect agriculture. "In any case, Uzbekistan will definitely suffer," he said. Analyses show that up to 250,000 people could lose their jobs in agriculture as a result of water shortages. The most vulnerable regions - Bukhara, Khorezm, Karakalpakstan, Surkhandarya, and Kashkadarya - are located mainly in rural areas and depend on agriculture and livestock. With almost half of Uzbekistan’s population living outside urban centers, the loss of agricultural viability is not just an economic problem; it is the disruption of a way of life. “Water scarcity, air pollution, biodiversity loss, and a sharp decline in agricultural productivity are constantly increasing,” President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said at COP 28, acknowledging that these problems are “reaching their “critical peak.” Yet policy responses are still lagging behind the pace of environmental change. Uzbekistan’s climate migration problem cannot be solved by managing water resources alone. This requires a new strategic framework – a “Water-Migration-Security” strategy that combines regional cooperation, innovative water-saving technologies in agriculture, and proactive adaptation measures for the communities most at...

Regional Ecological Summit

Central Asia Seeks Solutions to Water Scarcity Amid Climate Risks

Central Asian countries must accelerate the transition from discussing climate goals to implementing them in practice, as water scarcity intensifies and the impacts of climate change deepen, participants at a regional conference said on Friday. A key event on the final day of the Regional Ecological Summit (RES 2026) in Astana was the Central Asian Climate Change Conference (CACCC), where government officials, international organizations, and experts discussed risks to the region’s water, energy, and food security. Participants noted that declining water availability requires a fundamental shift in resource management approaches. [caption id="attachment_47800" align="aligncenter" width="1280"] Image: TCA[/caption] “In conditions of reduced water availability, the priority is no longer increasing water intake but improving efficiency in water use. Today, government support for water-saving technologies covers up to 80% of costs. This represents a fundamental shift toward rational and economically sound water management,” said Kazakhstan’s Vice Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Talgat Momyshev. According to him, by 2030, the use of such technologies is expected to expand to more than 1.3 million hectares, potentially reducing agricultural water consumption by approximately 30%. “This is not just about saving resources, but about forming a new management model where data, forecasting, and cross-sectoral coordination play a central role,” he added. Kazakhstan is also developing a national water information system that will integrate data on surface and groundwater resources. More than 6,000 canals are expected to be digitized by the end of the year, enabling a shift toward predictive water management. Participants placed particular emphasis on the transboundary nature of water resources in the region. [caption id="attachment_47801" align="aligncenter" width="1280"] Image: TCA[/caption] “The development of joint monitoring systems and data exchange, the creation of resilient infrastructure, and the coordination of water and energy policies are becoming increasingly important. We believe that data, trust, and joint planning must form the foundation of effective climate adaptation,” Momyshev said. International partners confirmed their readiness to expand support for the region. “Our current efforts in the water sector are reflected in the Swiss Cooperation Programme for Central Asia for 2026-2029," said Tobias Werder, a representative of the Swiss government. "More than half of its $200 million budget is allocated to water-related projects. Since 2017, we have also actively promoted the Blue Peace Central Asia initiative, which helps strengthen regional coordination and move from dialogue to practical solutions.” Kazakhstan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Yerlan Nyssanbayev, noted that the climate agenda in the region extends far beyond environmental issues. “For Central Asia, climate change is no longer a distant projection. It is a factor directly affecting water, energy, agriculture, infrastructure, and public health. Under these conditions, the climate agenda becomes a matter of economic resilience, regional security, and the quality of public governance,” he said. [caption id="attachment_47799" align="aligncenter" width="1280"] Image: TCA[/caption] According to Nyssanbayev, the region must accelerate the implementation of concrete projects. “It is now clear that we must focus on improving project preparation, expanding access to climate finance, and strengthening coordination. Without this, achieving our stated goals will be...