Ashgabat, Turkmenistan – On April 29, an interactive simulation of the Nexus Approach (Nexus Game) was conducted for students of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia’s (UNRCCA) Academy of Preventive Diplomacy by the USAID Central Asia’s Regional Water and Vulnerable Environment Activity in cooperation with the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC).
This is the fourth Nexus game held in Turkmenistan in the last two years. The first three games were held at the Civil Service Academy under the President of Turkmenistan and the Turkmen Agricultural Institute. As a result, a set of the Nexus Game was handed to the Civil Service Academy.
The UNRCCA is a special political mission of the United Nations Organization established in 2007 upon the initiative of the five Central Asian states. Its activities are focused on such areas as promoting preventive diplomacy in the region, monitoring and early warning, as well as building partnerships for conflict prevention, strengthening UN preventive activities in the region, encouraging cooperation and interaction between Central Asia and Afghanistan.
In 2019, the UNRCCA launched the Academy of Preventive Diplomacy for Young People in Central Asia and Afghanistan, which aims to strengthen ties between the youth of the region by creating a culture of conflict prevention through participation in lectures and practical classes. This allowed the participants of this Nexus Game to use their skills in resolving disputes.
Thus, the participants of the simulation played out various scenarios for managing water, energy and food resources between countries located downstream and upstream. Each participant got his own role and learned not only to defend the issues of his sector, but also to listen to other participants, argue their proposals and find compromises. Thus, on the basis of negotiations, transboundary water issues were regulated, agreements were concluded and mutually beneficial decisions were made.
“The Nexus Game in practice provided an opportunity to understand how various water management strategies can lead to sustainable development of society in harmony with nature. Against the background of climate change processes, such a tool is certainly needed to implement preventive diplomacy and prevent conflict situations in the region,” said Andriy Larin, Political Affairs Officer, UNRCCA.
In an effort to simultaneously meet the water needs of the population, industry and agriculture, the participants faced the challenges of climate change and solved many interrelated problems in the field of water, energy and food security. This helped the participants to understand the growing demand for water and prevent conflicts in the field of water supply between countries.
Brief reference
The Nexus Simulation was developed by the Centre for Systems Solutions in collaboration with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis and the “Sustainable Energy for All” Initiative. The history of its implementation in the Central Asian region began in 2018 within the framework of the EU project “Nexus Dialogue in Central Asia” implemented by CAREC. The game represents a facilitated process of playing 5 different scenarios for developing the territories upstream and downstream while addressing water needs of population, industry and agriculture and taking into account climate change challenges. Currently, the Nexus Game is actively promoted by CAREC in universities, academies, basin organizations and media in Central Asia with with funding from the EU and USAID.
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