Kazakhstan is preparing a new phase of efforts to restore the Northern Aral Sea together with the World Bank, focusing on raising water levels, improving irrigation management and strengthening regional co-operation over shared water resources.
The initiative, developed by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, centres on the reconstruction of the Kokaral Dam - a key hydraulic structure separating the Northern Aral Sea from the largely dried southern basin. Modernising the dam is expected to raise the sea’s water level to 44 metres, according to the Baltic height system.
Once the project is completed, the surface area of the Northern Aral Sea is expected to reach approximately 3,900 square kilometres, while the volume of water could increase to around 34 billion cubic metres. Authorities believe this will further stabilise the ecosystem of the northern basin, which has shown signs of recovery in recent years.
Alongside the dam reconstruction, the ministry is preparing more than 160 design and cost documentation packages aimed at modernising and automating irrigation systems in the Aral–Syr Darya basin. The projects will cover agricultural areas in the Turkestan and Kyzylorda regions and are intended to improve water efficiency, allowing surplus water to be redirected towards the Northern Aral Sea.
The project is currently being prepared for review by Kazakhstan’s Co-ordination Council for Co-operation with International Financial Organisations, chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov. The planned implementation period is 2026–2029.
Recent figures indicate that restoration efforts already under way have produced measurable results. Over the past three years, more than six billion cubic metres of water have flowed into the Northern Aral Sea following co-ordinated management of reservoirs along the Syr Darya River and the implementation of interstate water agreements.
As a result, the sea’s water volume increased from 18.9 billion cubic metres at the end of 2022 to 23 billion cubic metres by the end of 2025.
For Kazakhstan, the Northern Aral Sea is no longer viewed solely as an environmental issue. Its condition directly affects employment in coastal communities, the recovery of fisheries, the sustainability of agriculture and the overall balance of local ecosystems. In this context, co-operation with the World Bank is seen as a continuation of long-term efforts to stabilise the region.
Despite these efforts, the drying of the Aral Sea remains one of the largest environmental disasters in the region. Since the 1960s, its surface area has shrunk nearly ninefold, water levels have fallen threefold and the total volume of water has decreased by roughly fifteen times.
Each year, an estimated 100 million tonnes of salty dust rise from the dried seabed and spread across vast parts of Central Asia, affecting both the environment and public health. Against this backdrop, the second phase of the restoration project is expected to play an important role in stabilising the Northern Aral Sea and improving conditions in the surrounding regions.
Kazakhstan is preparing a new phase of efforts to restore the Northern Aral Sea together with the World Bank, focusing on raising water levels, imp...
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Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 13rd of March, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Ayman Ghazali, a 41-year-old U.S. citizen born in Lebanon, crashed his truck into the hallway of a Detroit-area synagogue on Thursday (12 March) while children attended preschool. Security personnel shot him dead during the confrontation, and authorities said no one else was seriously injured.
Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U.S. should “shut” its Middle East military bases, new Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday in his first speech since being elected. He is still yet to appear in public, and a broadcaster read out his words.
The U.S. should shut down its military bases in the Middle East, Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday (12 March). His words were read out by a broadcaster on state Iranian television.
Leaders of Iran, Israel, and the United States reiterated their determination to press on with the conflict on Friday (13 March), as the Middle East war approached two weeks, leaving thousands dead and millions affected, tensions in the region escalated further with a deadly attack in Iraq.
“Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel," a spokesman for the Iranian Army warned the world on Wednesday (11 March), as attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz escalated. Meanwhile, 32 countries agreed to the largest ever release of oil reserves in an attempt to reduce prices.
Norwegian police apprehended three brothers suspected of carrying out Sunday's (8 March) bombing at the U.S. embassy in Oslo, in an attack investigators have branded an act of terrorism.
Britain has deployed the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon to the eastern Mediterranean to strengthen protection for its military assets in the Middle East after a drone strike targeted a key UK air base in Cyprus earlier this month.
Leaders of Iran, Israel, and the United States reiterated their determination to press on with the conflict on Friday (13 March), as the Middle East war approached two weeks, leaving thousands dead and millions affected, tensions in the region escalated further with a deadly attack in Iraq.
Prices are rising sharply in Turkmenistan after the war disrupted imports from neighbouring Iran, a major supplier of fruit, vegetables, construction materials and cigarettes. Retailers and consumers warn the shortages are already driving up costs.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has accepted a peace prize awarded to him in Ankara. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan presented the Atatürk International Peace Prize to the UN chief in the country’s capital.
Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U.S. should “shut” its Middle East military bases, new Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday in his first speech since being elected. He is still yet to appear in public, and a broadcaster read out his words.
International security and climate change are top of the agenda as leaders and policymakers from around the world meet at the 13th Global Baku Forum in the Azerbaijani capital this week.
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