Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
5
Comparative Research Design
Before explaining the research design and describing the context and explanatory variables, it is
necessary to explain why these two countries Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were chosen for
research. The countries' importance for water supply in Central Asia was one criterion for their
selection: All major transboundary rivers of the region have their origin in these two mountain
states: Amu Darya (with its main tributaries Pjandzh, Vaksh, Kafirnigan) and Zeravshan in
Tajikistan; Syr Darya (with its main tributary Naryn), Chuy, Talas, and Sary Dzhas in Kyrgyzs
tan (see Figure 6). More than 70% of all water resources in the Aral Sea Basin, which covers
most of Central Asia, 21 are formed in these two states (SPECA 2004: 27).
Figure 6: Transboundary Rivers in Central Asia
Source: Institute of Geography, University of Giessen, Germany
Therefore, political decisions affecting water usage patterns there have an impact on the down
stream states, and thus on the stability of the whole region. However, this importance is how
ever not reflected in the current state of research on water in Central Asia, which tends to
focus on either interstate or local water management issues. This research gap on national
water policies in Central Asia shall be addressed in this thesis. A basic aim of this study is to
gain a well founded understanding of water governance in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
The second objective is to gain insights into the politics of water institutional reform and
its prospects for achieving good water governance which may be applied to other cases. As
was outlined earlier, the basic research question is which constraints and chances water institu
21 When speaking of Central Asia, I refer to the five former Soviet Republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. In hydrological and cultural respect, also Northern Afghanistan and the Autonomous
Region of Xinjiang (People's Republic of China) can be included (see Figure 6).
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