Kazakhstan is accelerating the digital transformation
of its water sector, as was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of
Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev at a government
meeting. He stated that a Digital Transformation Map has been approved jointly
with the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation. It aims to ensure
transparent water accounting, reduce losses, and improve planning quality. Nine business processes have been reengineered,
simplifying procedures by more than half through the transition to electronic formats. In total, 24
government services related to water resources are now available, all of them online. A key project is the National Water Resources
Information System, which integrates data from 11 government systems and
implements analytics and forecasting. The project is being developed in line
with e-government standards and is scheduled to be
commissioned by the end of the year. A system for electronic contracts and
water consumption forecasting is also being introduced. Domestic digital
solutions in water resource management are proving effective and are expanding
beyond Kazakhstan’s borders.
Next year, AgriTech platforms based on satellite data, Big Data, and AI are set
to be scaled up across
Central Asia.
«In 2025, the
projects covered two countries: Uzbekistan, as well as completed projects in
the Turkistan and Zhambyl regions of Kazakhstan. This year, the project is
expanding to cover the entire territory of Kazakhstan. In 2026, plans are
underway to expand services to Central Asia – Uzbekistan, the Kyrgyz Republic,
and Tajikistan, launch an international platform for the exchange of satellite
data on transboundary water resources, and develop Big Data and ML solutions,» Madiyev
said.
Alongside digital solutions, Kazakhstan is also focusing on water
efficiency across all sectors of the economy. Water-saving technologies are
being actively introduced in agriculture; last year, they were applied on
150,000 hectares. The emphasis will then
be placed on water conservation and reuse, with plans to more than
double this share by 2030.
«The new Water Code
requires businesses to gradually transition to water reuse. This will take
seven years: two years for preparation and another five for implementation. As
a result, by 2030, the share of water reuse will increase from 13 to 28%,
saving approximately 1.5 billion cubic meters of water,» noted Kazakh Minister of
Water Resources and Irrigation Nurzhan Nurzhigitov.
Related Articles
