Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has launched a €6 million package aimed at addressing the energy-water-land nexus in the agrifood sector of countries in Central Asia. The announcement was made today at the EBRD’s Annual Meeting and Business Forum in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

The package is funded by the Government of Germany through its International Climate Initiative and will comprise investment grants, guarantees and technical assistance to help the private sector transition to more low-carbon, climate-resilient food production.

The EBRD will also work with the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to implement the package. Among other things, the FAO will develop a methodological approach for the new financing mechanism in relation to the energy-water-land nexus in Central Asia. The new mechanism aims to facilitate further engagement with the private sector in nexus-related investments by providing enhanced evidence on the benefits, risks and trade-offs involved.

The package is part of a broader consortium programme between the EBRD, the FAO, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the Scientific-Information Center of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination of Central Asia (SIC ICWC), as well as ministries from participating countries. The consortium will address the challenges posed by the interdependence of energy, water and land use, which are exacerbated by climate change. It will be active in Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

The EBRD is aims to make the agrifood sector more sustainable, efficient and inclusive by achieving the best balance of preserving natural resources, addressing climate change and improving the environmental and social impact of food production.

Since 1991, the EBRD has invested over €1.5 billion in more than 250 agrifood projects in Central Asia to foster the transition to open market-oriented economies and to promote private and entrepreneurial initiative.