IFPRI CA NEWS DIGEST (JANUARY 10 – JANUARY 16, 2018)
News
Government of Tajikistan and World Bank sign new project to improve irrigation and food security
The government of Tajikistan and the World Bank signed a $16.5 million grant agreement for the Zarafshon Irrigation Rehabilitation and Management Improvement Project on January 16. The project will focus on infrastructure and institutional support in the Zarafshon river basin in northern Tajikistan. Approximately 40 percent of total irrigable land in the area is used for low-yielding barley, wheat, and oilseeds. The project aims to help farmers increase yields or switch to higher-value production. – ReliefWeb
Uzbekistan's export of fruits and vegetables records growth in 2017
Uzbekistan’s volume of fruit and vegetable exports increased by 15 percent to approximately $709 million in 2017. Uzbek producers have signed a number of export contracts with Asian and European countries and plan to expand into Africa and the Americas in the near future. Logistics centers are currently in development and are expected to aid these goals. – AzerNews
Tajikistan, Uzbekistan reach visa deal, settle border dispute
Plans are in place to scrap visa requirements for Uzbek and Tajik citizens seeking to visit one another’s countries for stays up to one month. A preliminary agreement was reached during a trip by Uzbek prime minister Abdulla Aripov to Tajikistan, which was intended to lay the groundwork for a historic visit by Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the spring. – EurasiaNet
Kyrgyzstan: agriculture ministry to improve dairy safety
The Ministry of Agriculture of Kyrgyzstan has launched a concept document regarding the safety of dairy products. Recognizing the importance of livestock breeding in national agriculture and the potential of dairy products as an export commodity, the ministry outlined steps to improve regulatory oversight of the sector. – 24.kg
Uzbekistan to launch green corridors with Baltic states, Belarus
Uzbekistan is working to simplify customs procedures for perishable goods with the Baltic countries and Belarus in addition to its neighbors Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Proposals for these “green corridors” are expected to be announced later this year. – AzerNews
Tajikistan currency loses nearly 12 percent of its value against the dollar in 2017
The Tajik somoni lost nearly 12 percent of its value against the dollar in 2017, down to 8.82 somoni per dollar by the end of the year from 7.88 on January 1. The somoni also weakened against the euro and Russian ruble over the same period. – Asia-Plus
Migrants transfer almost $2.3 billion to Kyrgyzstan in the first 11 months of 2017
The national bank of Kyrgyzstan announced that migrants transferred almost $2.3 billion to Kyrgyzstan in the first 11 months of 2017, representing an increase of approximately 21.8 percent from the same period in the previous year. – 24.kg
Analysis & Other Information
Kazakhstan's president heads to Trump's White House
Forbes magazine profiles Kazakhstan’s president Nursultan Nazarbayev in the run-up to his trip to Washington to meet his American counterpart Donald Trump on January 16. – Forbes
Water and politics in Central Asia
This short article provides a basic background of water resources in Central Asia, including a description of the political tensions caused by disagreements over dam construction. – The McGill International Review
Publications & Reports
Towards an impact on food security for Tajikistan: improved wheat grain and seed quality through plant breeding as a key
B. Husenov (2018). Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Dissertation.
The impact of the global financial crisis on the economic development in the Eurasian region
N. Ketenci (2017). Contemporary Research in Economic and Social Sciences, 1(1), June 2017, pp. 155-173.
Assessment of equilibrium exchange rate in commodity based economies
N. Mukanov, K. Mekenbayeva (2017). National Bank of Kazakhstan. Working paper no. 2017-7.
Remittances in North and Central Asian countries: enhancing development potential
A. Prokhorova (2017). Asia-Pacific Population Journal, 32(2), December 2017, pp. 9-60.
Gender dimension of migration from Central Asia to the Russian Federation
A. Rocheva, E. Varshaver (2017). Asia-Pacific Population Journal, 32(2), December 2017, pp. 61-86.
Putin's and Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union: a hybrid half-economics and half-political "Ianus Bifrons"
B. Sergi (2018). Journal of Eurasian Studies. In press.
Public wage bills in the Middle East and Central Asia
N. Tamirisa, C. Duenwald (2018). International Monetary Fund. Department paper/policy paper.
Getting incentives right: human capital investment and natural resource booms
G. Toews, A. Libman (2017). Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies (IOS). Working paper no. 370, October 2017.
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The articles included in this news digest have been generated from online sources. Any opinions stated herein are not representative of, or endorsed by, the International Food Policy Research Institute or its partners.
