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New safety system for Ortotokoi dam installed to protect towns in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan

A safety monitoring system on the Ortotokoi dam in Kyrgyzstan, installed with the support of UNECE, was inaugurated on Wednesday, 16 September.  


The dam is situated on the Chu River, which is shared by Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. An accident on the dam would have serious consequences for both countries — villages such as Kordai in Kazakhstan with 30,000 inhabitants and Tokmak and Kant in Kyrgyzstan with a joint population of more than 100,000 would be directly impacted. The new system installed with the support of UNECE allows both the Kyrgyz and Kazakh authorities to monitor the safety situation on the dam and to take action to prevent a disaster.


The Ortotokoi dam is used to provide irrigation water to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan and the management costs are shared between the countries. The new monitoring system will provide real-time information about the safety situation so that measures can be taken to decrease the risks and an early warning can be provided to the downstream populations. 


The new monitoring system was developed following a joint Kazakh-Kyrgyz safety assessment of the Ortotokoi dam performed in 2013. While the assessment concluded that the dam was safe, it was determined that there was a need to improve monitoring. Work is also ongoing to improve the safety monitoring equipment on the Kirov dam on the Talas River, the other major river shared by Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The joint work demonstrates opportunities for transboundary cooperation on dam safety issues.


The inauguration took place in connection with the 15-year anniversary of the Kazakh-Kyrgyz Agreement on cooperation on the Chu and Talas Rivers. Funding for the project has been provided by the Russian Federation.

The United Nations digital ambassador, Elyx, attended the inauguration of the new safety monitoring system on the Ortotokoi dam. See more here


For further information please contact:

Mr. Bo Libert
UNECE Regional Adviser on Environment
E-mail: [email protected]
Note to editors:

Dams and reservoirs are efficient means of addressing floods and droughts, but ageing dams can represent increased risks to life, health, property and the environment. The “Capacity-building for cooperation on dam safety in Central Asia” project, led by UNECE, seeks to help Central Asian countries to set up or revise national dam safety regulatory frameworks, to build the capacity of institutions and experts in Central Asia in this area and to promote subregional cooperation for information exchange and notification in case of accidents or emergency situations related to hydro-technical infrastructure. For more information see: http://www.unece.org/env/water/damsafety.html


Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan share the waters of the transboundary Chu and Talas Rivers. Whereas all facilities for the Rivers’ regulation, such as dams, water reservoirs and canals, are located upstream in the territory of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan depends on the operation and proper maintenance of these facilities. This situation prompted the two countries to establish a legal basis for the joint operation of the water management infrastructure. Under an agreement from 2000, UNECE has previously supported the establishment of a bilateral Commission on the Use of Water Management Facilities of Intergovernmental Status on the Chu and Talas Rivers, with a permanent secretariat as well as experts and working groups.

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