CAIAG Departments Heads Participated in the National Drought Dialogue

On March 27, 2026, Ulan Abdybachaev and Olga Kalashnikova, heads of the «Geodynamics and Georisks» and «Climate, Water, and Geoecology» departments of the Central Asian Institute for Applied Geosciences, participated in the National Drought Dialogue as part of the Drought Risk and Resilience Assessment (DRRA) – Central Asia project.

The National Drought Dialogue aims to identify and agree on priority national measures and clarify the role of relevant government agencies in water resources planning and management.

Specialists from government agencies, emergency management agencies, hydrometeorological services, the water sector, scientists, representatives of farmer and water user associations, and international development partners participated in the discussion and validation of the country drought profile, discussion of priority drought risk management measures, preparedness for climate change response, and an analysis of the vulnerability of the water and agricultural sectors.

Discussions of drought risks linked not only to precipitation deficits but also to limitations in seasonal reservoir management, deteriorating irrigation and drainage infrastructure, land and pasture degradation, weak coordination, and insufficient scientific monitoring to develop practical measures.

The dialogue confirmed that drought in the Kyrgyz Republic should be viewed as a systemic development challenge, not a specific emergency.

The DRRA initiative is being implemented by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) with support from the World Bank as part of CAWEP.

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