BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 11
By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend:
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree approving the concept of water sector development in the country from 2020 through 2030, Trend reports with reference to Uzbekistan National News Agency.
The document notes that due to global climate change as well as the growth of population and economic sectors, the growing demand for water increases the deficit of water resources from year to year.
The main objectives of the concept are the development of interstate relations on the use of transboundary water resources, the development and promotion of mutually acceptable mechanisms for joint water resources management, and effective water use programs that balance the interests of Central Asian countries.
The Ministry of Water Management, through the implementation of the priorities identified in the concept, is tasked to ensure that by 2030, the efficiency of irrigation systems will be increased from 0.63 to 0.73; the area of irrigated land with a low level of water supply will be reduced from 560,000 hectares to 190,000 hectares; saline irrigated land will be reduced by 226,000 hectares; and annual electricity consumption by pumping stations of the Ministry of Water Management will be reduced by 25 percent.
In addition, there are plans to install Smart Water measuring and control devices at all irrigation system facilities with the introduction of digital technologies in the water accounting process and to bring the total area of land covered by water-saving technologies for crop irrigation to two million hectares, including drip irrigation technologies on 600,000 hectares.
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