Bilateral meeting with the Deputy Minister for Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry of Kyrgyzstan, H.E. Samat Nasirdinov

Rome - The FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, and H.E. Samat Nasirdinov, Deputy Minister for Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, met in Rome on the sidelines of the FAO Regional Conference for Europe to discuss ways to further foster collaboration between FAO and Kyrgyzstan.

The Director-General recalled his recent meeting with H.E. Melis Turgunbaev, Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Technical Supervision on the sidelines of UNGA78 in New York and praised Kyrgyzstan's active role in the Mountain Partnership, as well as highlighting the country’s potential for aquaculture development.

The Deputy Minister informed the Director-General that the Kyrgyz Ministry of Agriculture was renamed the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture, and Processing Industry to emphasize the paramount importance the Government places on water resources. He noted that even though Kyrgyzstan is a water-generating country for the region, last year some water deficits were observed. The Deputy Minister also added that Investments in infrastructure and enhanced water management were required. The Director-General reaffirmed FAO’s readiness to support Kyrgyzstan in addressing its water management challenges and improving agricultural productivity. 

Furthermore, the Deputy Minister stressed the importance of digitalization for agriculture in Kyrgyzstan and noted that computer literacy was not at high levels among farmers, while more than 90% of farmers use mobile phones, leaving great potential for digitalization to transform agriculture in the country. The Director-General concurred with the Deputy Minister and noted that e-commerce could open global markets to Kyrgyz farmers. 

The Deputy Minister also touched upon importance of statistical data for timely and efficient policy decisions, informed of the upcoming agricultural census in 2025 for which he requested FAO’s assistance, and finally he praised the FAOSTAT as a key public good for global usage.

Both agreed to continue working together to accelerate agrifood systems transformation in the country.