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As concerns mount about looming heating and electricity shortages in Kyrgyzstan this winter, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have pledged to help Bishkek avert a crisis.
Fears about shortages stem from extremely low water levels in the Toktogul reservoir, a major source of hydropower in Central Asia, as well as for water used by downstream states for irrigation during the summer.
Top-level government officials from all three states signed an agreement in late November in Almaty, under which Kyrgyzstan agreed to minimize the amount of water in the Toktogul Reservoir used to generate electricity in the coming months, ensuring adequate supplies for downstream irrigation needs during the 2026 growing season. In return, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will send electricity to Kyrgyzstan to guarantee “the successful completion of the heating season,” according to a Kazakh government statement.
All three states also agreed to mount a water-conservation campaign. The Kazakh statement noted that the agreement was “legally binding,” although no information about an enforcement mechanism was disclosed.
Earlier in November, Kyrgyz officials announced a series of steps to reduce energy consumption this winter, citing the water deficit. Among the energy-conservation measures, lights at most government offices will be turned off from 6 pm to 6 am. Meanwhile, restaurants, shops, and entertainment venues must go dark by 10 pm. Officials in Tajikistan, also citing low water levels in reservoirs, have introduced similar initiatives.
According to local media reports, Kyrgyzstan’s water stress index has entered “pre-crisis” territory. As the government grapples with immediate perils, officials are also working on long-term improvements to lower the risk of similar challenges in the future. At a December 1 meeting convened by the Ministry of Water Resources and Agriculture, Deputy Minister Almaz Zheenaliev outlined modernization plans contained in a government-adopted National Water Strategy covering the next 15 years.
Zheenaliev said “reservoir construction, irrigation modernization, digitalization, and the creation of basin authorities” were key elements of “a unified strategy aimed at increasing the country’s water security.” He did not specify how the government would pay for all the improvements.
Other Kyrgyz officials have acknowledged that climate change is making it difficult to strategize on such matters as water supplies and food security. At a climate conference in October in Bishkek, Edil Baisalov, a deputy prime minister, stated that “the hydrological cycle in Kyrgyzstan has changed. This year, we were supposed to overcome water shortages, but instead, they have intensified.”
