by Galiya Khassenkhanova
It’s published
Afghanistan is rapidly building the Qosh Tepa Canal, a waterway that helps irrigate more than 500,000 hectares of arid Northern regions, redirecting 20-30% of the flow of the Amu Darya River.
In addition to Afghanistan, Amdarya flows through Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, with the last two countries downstream. The country relies on rivers to fuel hydroelectric power plants and irrigate farmlands.
Redirecting the river to a canal will destroy Central Asia’s water security, reducing Uzbekistan’s water supply by 15% and Turkmenistan’s water supply by 80%, and adversely affecting employment and poverty levels, migration and boundary conflicts.
At the same time, authorities in the two remaining Central Asian provinces (Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan) do not seem to be much concerned with the issue as Amdarya does not pass through their territory.
However, experts warn that if Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan receive less water from Am Darya to alleviate losses, they may start to intake more water from the upstream Sir Darya River.
“These changes in water balance will inevitably affect our country. It could be reduced by 30-40% from the Sildarya River from Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan,” said Azamatokan Amalteev, leader of Kazakhstan’s green party beitak.
Together, the rivers of Am Darya and Sir Darya feed the ecologically devastated Aral Sea.
“We are pleased to announce that Bulat Yessekin, founder and coordinator of Central Asia’s Water Resource Management and Climate Change Platforms,” said:
To preserve the ecosystem, he suggested that Central Asian countries should share energy and food resources with Afghanistan.
“They are building canals to feed themselves. It’s our fault that they don’t have water. We have a way to solve this problem.
Other experts from the recent Water Security and Tap Water Use Conference agreed that the construction of the Qosh Tepa canal would undermine all work related to the restoration of the Aral sea.
Central Asia is already suffering from water shortages due to climate change and declining water management, and new challenges could result in irreversible damage to the country’s ecosystem.
Water regulations
Water use in Central Asia is regulated by a 1992 agreement on the use and protection of transboundary water, a descendant of Soviet-era Protocol 566. The country also complies with the United Nations Convention on the Protection and Use of the United Nations Boundary Waterway and International Lakes.
“Central Asian countries have been able to maintain relatively cooperative and peaceful relations despite ongoing water quality and volume issues,” the UN World Water Development Report 2024 states.
However, Afghanistan is not part of these agreements and the Taliban is not recognized by international organizations or states.
Nevertheless, Central Asian countries gradually improve relations with the regime. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have removed the Taliban from the list of banned terrorist groups, but Uzbekistan is actively working together with its neighbours.
“We are interested in the stable and fair distribution of water resources given the needs of the ecosystem and the socioeconomic development of the region,” said Kazakh Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation.
Afghanistan demonstrated its readiness to discuss the issue of sharing water, noting that its people have the same use rights as other countries.
“We don’t see any issues in this regard. This is a very good opportunity for coordination and cooperation,” said Mohammad Name Waldak, Deputy Minister of Afghanistan.
“If someone has a problem, we are ready to solve it. The Qosh Tepa Canal is not at a disadvantage to anyone.”
Kazakhstan believes that the platform already exists where we can discuss these issues.
“In light of Kazakhstan taking up the chairmanship of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea in 2024, the Ministry believes it is appropriate to address the issue of water distribution in the region, including Afghanistan, within the framework of IFAS, which has pending agreements from all member states,” the Ministry of Water Resources said.
All parties agree that Afghanistan has the right to take water from Amdarya, but should do so by working with its downstream neighbors.
Kabul needs to consider modern water conservation techniques to prevent unnecessary water loss, and Central Asia can share experts.
