COP26 - Kazakhstan implements national adaption plan on climate change.

With a total surface area of 2.72 million square kilometres, Kazakhstan is the world’s largest landlocked country and the ninth-largest overall. Located at the centre of the Eurasian continent, Kazakhstan strategically links the markets of South East Asia and Western Europe.

Its projected climate change impacts vary across the country but Kazakhstan has already begun to experience an increasing number of droughts, floods, landslides, mudflows and ice jams that affect agriculture, fisheries, forests, energy production, water, and health.

Changing rainfall patterns are increasing the intensity and frequency of droughts. With the majority of the country’s topography classified as steppe, desert or semi-desert, climate change is placing an additional burden on the country’s water resource management and the livelihoods of almost 13 percent of the population that lives in high drought-prone areas. Due to low rainfall, severe water shortages occurred in 2012 and 2014 as a result of the reduced water levels of two major rivers in the country.

The increasing occurrence of floods and associated mudflows  have resulted in the displacement of thousands of Kazak people. Such events last year in the southern parts of the country impacted 51 settlements, inundated more than 2,300 houses, displaced around 13,000 people, and caused economic losses, estimated at US$125  million. Overall, almost one-third of the Kazak population lives in regions that are prone to mudslides, including the nearly 1.8 million citizens of Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty Recent climate projections predict that these will occur more frequently with the increase of torrential rains.

Over-reliance on oil production makes the Kazakh economy  vulnerable to market forces tied to the demand for oil-based products so experts say that climate-proofing its economically-significant sectors will be required to deliver more sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

The development of a National Adaptation Plan is a step in that direction, which the government recognises as a fundamental process to future-proof its investments against the potential impacts of a changing climate

Kazakhstan has, for example, prioritised the reversal of desertification, water scarcity, and the degradation of land through reforestation and restoration of abandoned farmlands.

While such efforts are focused on mitigation, Kazakhstan is in the process of developing and capacitating climate change adaptation plans and integrating them into legislative and institutional arrangements. One example of an adaptation strategy currently being developed is the introduction of adaptive growing technologies to compensate for the expected decline in favourable climate conditions needed for spring crops.

Climate change may have a negative impact on the health of the population both because of intensification of thermal stress in southern regions and the spread of disease.

However, Kazakhstan increasingly recognises the importance of reducing the country’s vulnerability to climate change and has started to expand its investments in climate change adaptation.

But, despite some progress, there is no escaping the risks posed by climate change.

Projected climate change impacts vary across the country and Kazakhstan has already begun to experience this in ways.

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