USAID trains next generation of water specialists in Central Asia

Larissa Kogutenko cares about water – a lot.

“Water resources are the most precious natural resource we share on the planet,” she says. “But the challenges we face today require us to find new methods and approaches for using these resources more wisely. This keeps me up at night.”

Yes, Kogutenko is worried. But she’s also hopeful because she helps train the next generation of water specialists in Central Asia in the latest and most innovative concepts for natural resource management. 

Kogutenko coordinates a master’s program in environmental science at Kazakh-German University (DKU) in Almaty. To assist her search for innovative approaches to guide her students, Kogutenko received support from USAID’s Regional Water and Vulnerable Environment (WAVE) activity, which offers grants in Central Asia to build human capital and educational institutions to confront water challenges.

This partnership is the latest development in a long partnership between DKU and USAID, which has helped create the university’s Integrated Water Resource Management master’s program about a decade ago. 

Today, USAID’s WAVE supports Kogutenko to introduce the Water-Energy-Food-Environment (WEFE) Nexus approach to her students and other academics to emphasize the links between these four sectors and the need for coordinated action to maximize benefits in a sustainable manner. 

“You can feel the winds of change when it comes to natural resource management,” she says. “Countries in our region are committing to reform their water sectors and cooperate more on transboundary issues. I’m committed to seeing that we have the tools and technologies in place to make these changes happen. And that starts with building capacity in local water specialists.”

The concepts of the WEFE Nexus approach excites Kogutenko because they bring a comprehensive view to water management: “WEFE Nexus provides us with a unique opportunity to promote the benefits of cooperation to properly manage our resources and inspire a new stage of growth in Central Asia.”

For Kogutenko, the need for cooperation cannot be overstated. As an example, consider the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river basins in Central Asia. Together, these basins provide 90 percent of the region’s river water and cover 37 percent of the land area in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, as well as large parts of Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. Given the large proportion of water supply from these rivers, concerns about the overuse of water for irrigation and industry require cooperation and a wide-angle view from many parties. 

The USAID grant to DKU will also support Kogutenko to organize WEFE Nexus-related training sessions for 25 government officials from each Central Asian country. The training sessions will include hands-on work and case studies to help participants make the leap from concept to practice in state agencies.

“We believe that any endeavor should start with capacity building, and our task is to bring this approach to decision-makers,” Kogutenko says. “If decision-makers understand and implement the WEFE Nexus approach, they will be able to change their approach to managing water resources in the region,” she says.

While the WEFE Nexus approach provides new insights for water and resource management, Kogutenko notes that the method has significant implications for climate change mitigation and adaptation in the region.

“Water is the basis of everything. We see glaciers melt more quickly in our region and this raises concerns about future water availability, which impacts our food security and environment. These are the building blocks of resilience for people in Central Asia.” 

The training courses will accompany the development of study materials and curricula that state agencies and educational institutions throughout Central Asia can use to instruct others in the concepts and benefits of the WEFE Nexus approach to resource management. This collaborative approach instills confidence in Kogutenko. 

USAID sees this confidence as well. The WEFE Nexus will at the end make Central Asian communities more resource efficient and sustainable.