Blue Peace Central Asia: Swiss Initiative for Water Cooperation in Central Asia

Astana, 28 January 2025 – A team of the Executive Committee of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (EC IFAS) had a meeting with a Swiss delegation headed by the Ambassador of Switzerland to the Republic of Kazakhstan Salman Bal at the office of the EC IFAS. The delegation included representatives from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

During the meeting the Swiss side presented Blue Peace Central Asia (BPCA) initiative aimed at promoting the strengthening of transboundary water cooperation in Central Asia. This initiative also includes activities pursuing increasing the efficiency of water use and management in the context of accelerating climate change processes. BPCA consists of three Key areas: water diplomacy, sharing the benefits and capacity building.

Both sides expressed their readiness to cooperate within the framework of regional projects in the field of water cooperation in Central Asia, as well as to collaborate in implementation of the Fourth Aral Sea Basin Program (ASBP-4) and the Regional Environmental Program for Sustainable Development in Central Asia (REP4SD-CA) with implementation period until 2030 taking into account the interests of all countries in the Aral Sea basin.