FOOD AND WATER SECURITY NEXUS IN CENTRAL ASIA- A

LITERATURE REVIEW

Submitted by,

Smritirekha Sarma Haloi

1857366

Submitted to,

Dr. Madhumati Deshpande

MAIS

Department of International Studies and History

School of Law

Submitted on: 10th March, 2019

INTRODUCTION

The countries of the Central Asian region are heavily agrarian societies and have low

income per capita except for Turkmenistan which has high oil and gas reserves. Water scarcity

is also rampant in the region coupled with inefficient use of water. Because of this, agricultural

activities are not as efficient as they should be. Only a small part of the region’s land is

cultivable and it is entirely dependent on irrigation in order to achieve significant yields.

Moreover, state intervention, a legacy of the Soviet era is still reflected in many parts of

Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. A substantial portion of population in these places,

particularly children, are chronically malnourished.

This essay is an attempt to review the existing literature in the topic of “Food and Water

Security Nexus in Central Asia”. All the literature referred for this review are secondary

sources. This literature review will broadly include the following themes:

1. Sate of Food and Water Security in Central Asia

2. Causes of Food and Water insecurities

3. How to mitigate these insecurities?

STATE OF FOOD AND WATER SECURITY IN CENTRAL ASIA

Water and irrigation have been important factors for progress, development of culture

and sciences, and the co-operation of people inhabiting Central Asia. Most of Central Asia has

an arid climate. Scant precipitation (less than 350–400 mm/year), extremely low humidity (22–

40% in summer), high evaporation rates (maximum 1,700 t/year), and abundant solar radiation

are major climatic features of this region covering an area of more than 300 million ha.
Therefore, management of water resources has been a very crucial element in the Central Asian

civilization since time immemorial. Similarly, when it comes to food, agriculture or farming

has been considered as one of the most honourable occupations in the whole of Central Asia.

Today sustainable food security in the region depends on two main issues:

1. Long term balance between food and demand

2. Food availability

` Food security refers to both physical and economic access to food and food supplies.

Food security in Central Asia cannot be understood as a stand-alone challenge. The current

food crisis in the region cannot be understood unless located in the broader nexus that

encompasses food, water and indeed energy (gas and oil). Developing a sustainable strategy

will require in depth understanding of the three nexus and how they are entangled with each

other. Tajikistan has faced the most acute situation in the region.

Irrigation has been an vital element of agriculture throughout Central Asia but due to

drop in world prices on agricultural output, farmers are unable to support the water sector. As

a result it has affected productivity of various crops ( know about water sharing in central Asian

countries)There is a drastic decrease in subsidies and support of the agriculture and water

sectors, In addition, procurement of agricultural machinery, fertilizers and other chemicals has

declined along with the deterioration of the water sector.

CAUSES OF FOOD AND WATER INSECURITY

During the transition from planned to market economies, the Central Asian Republics

experienced rising poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition (Green and Bauer, 1998). The rise
in Central Asia’s food insecurity is an indirect result of a poor macroeconomic environment,

which is illustrated by the initial fall in national output and high inflation rates

Although much progress has been made in moving toward a market economy and in

implementing land reforms the process is not yet complete. Food sector reforms, particularly

the removal of school and preschool nutrition programmes and the elimination of food

subsidies, have increased the vulnerability of poor households to food insecurity and

malnutrition

As mentioned earlier, Tajikistan is hit worst by the food insecurity in the region. Some of

the important causes are:

i. Exclusive dependence on Uzbekistan for its gas supplies and its relative bad

relations with the country.

ii. Extreme weather conditions and natural disasters

iii. Overarching reliance on Kazakhstan and Russia for its food and gain imports which

results in unaffordability.

Water scarcity is a major issue in the Central Asian region. The two main sources of water

in central Asia are Syr Darya and Amu Darya Rivers. 96% of the water of both the rivers is

used for irrigation purposes. At the heart of the problem is the lack of cooperation and dialogue

in regards to regional water management. Downstream countries like Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan

and Turkmenistan are dependent on irrigated agriculture whereas upstream countries like

Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are focused on expanding reservoir capacity and hydroelectric

power generation. Therefore, absence of bilateral dialogues regarding efficient water sharing

and extreme climatic conditions characterised by draughts are two of the main causes of water

insecurity in the region of Central Asia.

HOW TO MITIGATE THESE?

In order to achieve, sustainable food and water security in Central Asia, following are some

of the suggestions or recommendations from various authors and scholars:

1. Development of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM).

2. Establishment of a strong state policy oriented towards food security.

3. Increasing water rights for irrigated agriculture at all levels of water hierarchy.

4. Strengthening collaboration between states for establishment of a guaranteed regime of

water delivery.

5. Improving energy efficiency, reducing dependency on water for energy (diversification

of sources), and rationalizing water use especially in agriculture

6. Developing a regional energy market and exploring opportunities for energy-water

exchanges, the development of alternative energy sources and improving overall energy

efficiency;

7. Lowering barriers to trading food and agricultural goods, thus promoting their more

cost-, water- and energy efficient production and exchange within the region;

8. Developing mechanisms to incorporate wider impacts in sector-based policy

development, and improving inter-sectoral coordination at the basin level by increasing

representation of and consultation with the relevant ministries;

9. Improving basin-wide monitoring, data verification and exchange, and knowledge-

sharing, including joint monitoring and joint forecasting.

CONCLUSION

After reviewing the available literature in on the topic, following are research gaps that

have been identified:

1. Potential for bilateral dialogues between the Central Asian countries regarding water

sharing

2. Political economy of irrigated agriculture in the region

3. Migration-Water-Food Security Nexus

4. Mitigating Tajikistan’s Food Security crisis

REFERENCES

Qin, T. (2008). Implementing Integrated Water Resources Management in Central Asia. Edited
by PATRICIA WOUTERS, VICTOR DUKHOVNY AND ANDREW ALLAN. Journal Of
Environmental Law, 20(3), 493-496. doi: 10.1093/jel/eqn024

Laldjebaev, M. (2010). The Water–Energy Puzzle in Central Asia: The Tajikistan

Perspective. International Journal Of Water Resources Development, 26(1), 23-36. doi:
10.1080/07900620903391812

Granit, J., Jägerskog, A., Lindström, A., Björklund, G., Bullock, A., & Löfgren, R. et al. (2012).
Regional Options for Addressing the Water, Energy and Food Nexus in Central Asia and the
Aral Sea Basin. International Journal Of Water Resources Development, 28(3), 419-432. doi:
10.1080/07900627.2012.684307

Rhoe, V., Babu, S., & Reidhead, W. (2008). An analysis of food security and poverty in Central
Asia—case study from Kazakhstan. Journal Of International Development, 20(4), 452-465.
doi: 10.1002/jid.1421

Hannan, T. (2000). A Solution to the Aral Sea Crisis? Sustainable Water Use in Central
Asia. Water And Environment Journal, 14(3), 213-218. doi: 10.1111/j.1747-
6593.2000.tb00252.x

King, E., Curtin, M., Namgyal, T., Kazmir, M., Bell, B., & Kampmark, B. et al. (2019). Solving
Central Asia’s Water Crisis. Retrieved from https://intpolicydigest.org/2017/05/19/solving-
central-asia-s-water-crisis/

Linn, J. (2019). The Impending Water Crisis in Central Asia: An Immediate Threat. Retrieved
from https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/the-impending-water-crisis-in-central-asia-an-
immediate-threat/