As part of international efforts to support agricultural productivity and sustainability of resources in light of climate change challenges, a new quadripartite collaboration aims to develop degraded ecosystems in the Aral Sea region and support resource-poor rural communities. The project will be implemented by the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) through its Regional Office for Central Asia and the South Caucasus in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, funded by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD). Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Innovative Development and Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Agriculture will partner on the project. The project will specifically target vulnerable communities living in the degraded areas of Karakalpakstan, a republic within Uzbekistan.
ADFD, the Ministry of Innovative Development of Uzbekistan, and the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbekistan signed a Memorandum of Understanding to this effect. ADFD and ICBA signed a cooperation agreement. The project is expected to directly benefit up to 15,000 farmers and agropastoralists and their households (up to 75,000 people), develop the capacity of up to 150 extension workers, as well as establish or strengthen up to 15 farmers’ cooperatives. Running from 2022 to 2026, the project is designed to enhance farming communities’ resilience to climate change and develop their adaptive capacity to land degradation and other unfavorable factors.