125
market conditions for the export of cotton and its processed products and in spite of
a quest for privatisation in land holdings. The farmer seems to be the least involved
actor in making any decisions about cultivation patterns, timing of water allocation
and selection of agricultural inputs. Water user associations have given a new name
to the old control mechanism. The water management system in Fergana seems to
be the least in line with the changed conditions and with the changing conditions of
a growing population and expanding demands of the up-and-coming generation.
The latest report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) ( 2011 ) on “water pressures
in Central Asia” states that “[t]he concerns Crisis Group identifi ed in 2002 – inadequate infrastructure, poor water management and outdated irrigation methods –
remain unaddressed, while the security environment is bleaker”. The ICG
recommends to the governments sharing the Fergana Valley: “Commit to resolving
border demarcation problems without using water or energy as a coercive factor;
facilitate cross-border cooperation between police forces and form a tripartite intraregional council to oversee day-to-day management of water and land resources
parallel to high-level border delimitation negotiations”.
7 The hydraulic constraints
that were imposed on Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan after independence
remain to be the result of path-dependent developments from Tsarist and Soviet
legacies. Rescaling could become a necessity if no consensus among neighbours
can be accomplished that serves the purpose. Rescaling is a major challenge in
changing the rules of the game within respective countries. It seems that practical
measures to address the challenges of rescaling the water management system
require a transformative spirit from both inside and outside of the Fergana Valley.
References
Benyaminovich ZM, Tersitskii DK (1975) Irrigation in Uzbekistan II. Fan Publishing House,
Tashkent (in Russian)
Bichsel C (ed) (2009) Confl ict transformation in Central Asia. Irrigation disputes in the Ferghana
Valley. Routledge, Abingdon
Bichsel C, Mukhabbatov K (2011) Land, water, ecology. In: Starr FS, Beshimov B, Bobokulov II,
Shozimov P (eds) Ferghana valley. The heart of Central Asia. M. E. Sharpe, Armonk/London,
pp 253–277
Brenner N (1999) Beyond state-centrism? Space, territoriality, and geographical scale in globalization studies. Theory Soc 28:39–78. doi: 10.1023/A:1006996806674
Cariou A (2004) Le jardin saccagé. Anciennes oasis et nouvelles campagnes d’Ouzbékistan. Ann
Geogr 113:51–73
7 See the detailed Europe and Central Asia Report No. 233, released on 9 September 2014 at http://
www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/asia/central-asia/233-water-pressures-in-central-asia.aspx?utm_
source=central-asia-report&utm_medium=1&utm_campaign=mremail
(= http://tinyurl.com/
ocbbkln ) and accessed on 12 September 2014.
Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
Noncommercial License, which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
9 From Upscaling to Rescaling: Transforming the Fergana Basin from Tsarist…
market conditions for the export of cotton and its processed products and in spite of
a quest for privatisation in land holdings. The farmer seems to be the least involved
actor in making any decisions about cultivation patterns, timing of water allocation
and selection of agricultural inputs. Water user associations have given a new name
to the old control mechanism. The water management system in Fergana seems to
be the least in line with the changed conditions and with the changing conditions of
a growing population and expanding demands of the up-and-coming generation.
The latest report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) ( 2011 ) on “water pressures
in Central Asia” states that “[t]he concerns Crisis Group identifi ed in 2002 – inadequate infrastructure, poor water management and outdated irrigation methods –
remain unaddressed, while the security environment is bleaker”. The ICG
recommends to the governments sharing the Fergana Valley: “Commit to resolving
border demarcation problems without using water or energy as a coercive factor;
facilitate cross-border cooperation between police forces and form a tripartite intraregional council to oversee day-to-day management of water and land resources
parallel to high-level border delimitation negotiations”.
7 The hydraulic constraints
that were imposed on Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan after independence
remain to be the result of path-dependent developments from Tsarist and Soviet
legacies. Rescaling could become a necessity if no consensus among neighbours
can be accomplished that serves the purpose. Rescaling is a major challenge in
changing the rules of the game within respective countries. It seems that practical
measures to address the challenges of rescaling the water management system
require a transformative spirit from both inside and outside of the Fergana Valley.
References
Benyaminovich ZM, Tersitskii DK (1975) Irrigation in Uzbekistan II. Fan Publishing House,
Tashkent (in Russian)
Bichsel C (ed) (2009) Confl ict transformation in Central Asia. Irrigation disputes in the Ferghana
Valley. Routledge, Abingdon
Bichsel C, Mukhabbatov K (2011) Land, water, ecology. In: Starr FS, Beshimov B, Bobokulov II,
Shozimov P (eds) Ferghana valley. The heart of Central Asia. M. E. Sharpe, Armonk/London,
pp 253–277
Brenner N (1999) Beyond state-centrism? Space, territoriality, and geographical scale in globalization studies. Theory Soc 28:39–78. doi: 10.1023/A:1006996806674
Cariou A (2004) Le jardin saccagé. Anciennes oasis et nouvelles campagnes d’Ouzbékistan. Ann
Geogr 113:51–73
7 See the detailed Europe and Central Asia Report No. 233, released on 9 September 2014 at http://
www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/asia/central-asia/233-water-pressures-in-central-asia.aspx?utm_
source=central-asia-report&utm_medium=1&utm_campaign=mremail
(= http://tinyurl.com/
ocbbkln ) and accessed on 12 September 2014.
Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
Noncommercial License, which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
9 From Upscaling to Rescaling: Transforming the Fergana Basin from Tsarist…