Impressions – Agricultural Innovations, Rural Development and Globalization Processes in Central Asia

EEGA Fellow Golib Sanaev organized a workshop on „Agricultural Innovations, Rural Development and Globalization Processes in Central Asia” on 17 February at IAMO bringing together researchers studying the ongoing processes of agricultural development in the region.

The workshop aimed at providing a platform for knowledge exchange, discussion and networking and brought together over 40 participants from various research institutes and universities in Germany. The presentations covered the topics of data infrastructure development for interdisciplinary research, diffusion of mechanized cotton harvesting, reforms and technology adoption in irrigation water management, organization of agriculture, market participation and value chains. As the presentations and discussions showed agricultural potential and rural development in the region have to face variety of challenges ranging from land tenure security, government interventions in input and output markets, inadequate access to credit, degrading land resources and climate change.

In his keynote speech on the status and future of irrigated agriculture in the Aral Sea Basin, Prof. Dr. Christopher Conrad from the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg presented the regional hotspots observed from geodata-driven studies. He emphasized the importance of integrating environmental research with social sciences and humanities in understanding drivers and outcomes of ongoing processes in Central Asia.

The presentation slides from the workshop are available. For the access code, please contact caworkshop(at)iamo.de.