The Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia (CAREC), with financial support from the international development organization "The Coca-Cola Foundation" and the "Global Water Challenge," has launched the projects on “Integrated Watershed Management in the Ishim River Basin in Kazakhstan” and “Increasing Economic Independence and Improving the Status of Women in Rural Central Asia through Access to Irrigation Water and Infrastructure”.
On October 3, 2023, an inception workshop was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The workshop aimed to introduce the regional participants to the objectives and goals of the projects. The workshop brought together top management of COCA-COLA İÇECEK A.Ş. for the Central Asian region and the Caucasus, CAREC, the international charitable foundation “The Coca-Cola Foundation”, representatives of local water user associations, basin inspectorates, experts on water and environmental issues, as well as representatives of the academic community.
The inception workshop provided an overview of the expected results, potential risks, key performance indicators, and the strategy for implementing the projects to a broad participant from Central Asia. The inception workshop emphasized the importance of monitoring and evaluating projects throughout their lifecycle to ensure transparency and clear reporting of results. This approach is designed to address regional issues related to sustainable irrigation water management. This critical step aligns with The Coca-Cola Foundation's 2030 development strategy for Central Asia, ensuring the successful implementation of projects.
The inception workshop facilitated discussions on the core principles of coordination and interaction at national and regional levels. It helped establish a shared understanding of project concepts and their execution modalities while also reinforcing the commitment to amicable and neighborly relations within the framework of multilateral cooperation. This was done in conjunction with the broad Central Asian ministerial representatives of Central Asia, country offices of the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia (CAREC) in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, under the supervision of CAREC's headquarters in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
