Serving the People of Central Asia

International Fund for saving the Aral Sea � 20 years towards cooperation

Kanat — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 16:10:25 +0600

29-30 May 2013, the scientific and practical conference devoted to the 20th anniversary of the International Fund for saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) took place at the Kazakh National Agrarian University. The event was organized by the MFA of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Executive Committee of IFAS and the Executive Board of IFAS in Kazakhstan.

The conference was attended by about 200 delegates originated from the Central Asian countries, Russia, the Republic of Belarus, USA, Germany, Switzerland, France, as well as representatives from regional institutions, international organizations, NGOs, and experts from academia.

In Astana the official reception in honor of the 20th anniversary of IFAS was organized

Asele — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 17:07:00 +0600

The official reception in honor of the 20th anniversary of the International Fund for saving the Aral Sea was held in Astana 19^th April for foreign missions and international organizations accredited in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Statement by the Executive Committee IFAS Saghit Ibatullin statement-by-the-chairman-of-ec-ifas_eng.pdf [139,64 Kb]

Discussions were held on the glaciers and water resources issue in Central Asia within the framework of seminar on the 20th anniversary of IFAS

Asele — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:15:00 +0600

In Almaty, April 11-12, the international seminar "The impact of melting glaciers on water resources in Central Asia" was held.

Experts from institutions in the region, as well as foreign universities presented various reviews on the state of the glaciers of Central Asia, and identified the problems associated with the lack of a full-fledged study and data for prognosis of future conditions.

IFAS is involved to preparation of Assessment of the Water-Food-Energy ecosystems nexus in transboundary basins under the UNECE Water Convention

Asele — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 16:14:00 +0600

An expert workshop as part of preparation to the Assessment under the UNECE Water Convention was organized from 8 to 9 April 2013 to work out the methodology. EC IFAS provided input to the working process.

The experts of Asia-Pacific region discussed problems of Water-Food-Energy nexus

Asele — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 13:45:34 +0600

Executive Committee of IFAS participated in the Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on Improving Access to Water Sanitation and Energy Services in Asia and the Pacific by addressing the Water-Food Energy nexus on 20-22 March 2013, Bangkok,Thailand.

To attention of users the online catalogue of databases and information of the Aral Sea Basin is presented

Asele — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 17:17:33 +0600

The online catalogue of the existing datasets and information of the Aral Sea Basin has been developed in collaboration with the main partners producing/managing water related data and information.

Another expedition for biological studies on the aral sea was accomplished

Asele — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:48:22 +0600

In January-February another expedition to the Northern Aral Sea of the team headed by professor in biology Nikolay Aladin.

Technical specialists of the region studied different approaches to IWRM modeling in the Aral Sea Basin

Asele — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 16:13:00 +0600

EC IFAS jointly with World Bank organized training on review of BEAM and AralDIF models: modeling approaches, model architecture, data needs and application.

The training workshop produced an opportunity for participants to get training on the practical use of the BEAM model.

These two identical sessions became the first in a series of training and informational sessions to explore BEAM model and opportunities for a system-of-models in support of a decision support system for the two river basins of the Aral Sea.

About BEAM Model

Asele — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 17:48:00 +0600

An economic model for water use in transboundary river basins customized for the Aral Sea Basin (BEAM)

IFAS supports the elaboration of a long-term comprehensive regional water resources management agreement by providing thorough analysis of the economic and welfare ramifications of optimum water-resource management in the Aral Sea basin.

BEAM is developed as a decision support system to facilitate putting “value on water use” and sustainable use of water resources in support of development. The model estimates welfare changes associated with changes to how water is allocated between the countries in the basin.

Water is allocated according to economic optimization criteria. In other words, the BEAM model allocates water across time and space to different uses so that the economic welfare associated with water use is maximized.

The model addresses the Aral Sea Basin as a whole – that is, the rivers Syrdarya and Amydarya, including Kazkhardarya and Zerafshan, and the Aral Sea. The model covers 5 sectors: agriculture, hydropower, nature, households and industry. The focus of the model is on welfare impacts associated with changes to water use in the agriculture and hydropower sectors.

Documentation for BEAM model

Asele — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 17:22:00 +0600

Brief information about BEAM aral-sea-beam_brief_en.pdf [93,25 Kb]

Informational booklet about BEAM beam_eng.pdf [4,85 Mb]

User's Manual beam_users-manual_final_en.pdf [1,78 Mb]

Programmer's Manual beam_programmers-manual_final_en.pdf [1,61 Mb]

Glossary of terms, definitions and abbreviations used in BEAM documents beam-glossary_final.pdf [317,91 Kb]

Informational booklet - BEAM in practice beam-in-practice_eng.pdf [5,96 Mb]

Standard reporting form beam-standard-reporting-form.doc [32,5 Kb]