Kazakhstan D rylands Management Project’s Objectives

1. KazakhstanDrylands Management Project’s Objectives

2. Project Background • Kazakhstan inherited one of the greatest agricultural challenges of the post Soviet republics: dry lands, around 180 mln hectares, previously being used as pastures and rangelands, are degrading.

3. Project Background • Sustainability of the steppe lands is based on a symbiosis of animals and vegetation. Animals, both wild and domestic, are completely dependent on grasses and bushes. Just as the vegetation cannot live without being eaten by animals.

4. Project Background • The Kazakhstan steppes were populated with millions of heads of wild goats – saiga. Now more than 90 % of the domestic animals are kept in the village areas. More than 100 mln ha are empty, without animals

5. Project Background • Changes in the dry lands management during the last six-seven decades have shifted the lands ecosystems’ balance between vegetation and animals.

6. Project Background • In the 1950s and 1960s cereal cultivation was excessively extended to the marginal dry steppe areas suitable only for pasturing. The virgin lands were ploughed for sowing grain, which eroded the soil.

7. Project Background • In the 1990s domestic animals were slaughtered and used for barter payment. This reduced dramatically the number of animals grazing in the steppes.

8. Drylands Management Project • Kazakhstan agricultural lands’ carbon stock decreases by 0,3-1,0 ton or 5-7% annually • With such rate of degradation Kazakhstan may loose its agricultural lands in 50-60 years. Some of the areas are already under threat of desertification which has critical implications both at national and global level e.g., climate change, food security and rural poverty.

9. Kazakhstan Drylands Management Project, a 10 million dollar pilot project supported by Government of Kazakhstan and GEF

10. Project Goal The Project demonstrates and promote sustainable land uses in the marginal drylands ecosystem ( low humus, fragile soils and less than 300 mm of annual precipitation and high summer temperatures) in the pilot area of Shetsky rayon, in the southern part of Karaganda oblast.

11. Project Activities • The project is testing and demonstrating the environmental, social and economic viability of shifting from the current unsustainable cereal based production system to the traditional livestock based production system by doing the following: • Development and expansion of livestock based production systems by, inter alia, revegetating the abandoned cereal lands with perennial grasses and improving the existing degraded pastures and rangelands and restoring watering points to reduce over grazing around villages and encourage greater use of distant pastures and rangelands; • Establishment of village milk collection centers, a regional agricultural market for sale of livestock and plant products from the project area; • Research effort to determine carbon sequestration in different land use and agricultural practices; • Public awareness through TV, radio and publications and capacity building through training, workshops, extension materials, field days, tours and visits etc.;

12. Project Results Are Encouraging • The total area restored by the project so far is 27000 ha (direct seeding – 6050 ha, conservation technology – 9600 ha, acceleration of natural restoration – 6631 ha and improvement of degraded pastures – 2200 ha), while the target plan was 21500 ha.

13. Project Results • Two/three-year-old Agropyron fields gave yields of around 1.5 tones/ha of dry matter, while the natural pastures of the farms gave an yield of around 0.5 tones/ha of dry matter. • The number of farms, participating in the project consistently increased each year and in 2007 the number exceeded 100 large demonstration farms. • Many farmers are adopting grass plantings on their own. • There is more demand by farmers but availability of seeds and machinery are bottlenecks

14. Project Results The number of livestock in the project area has grown significantly higher as compared to settlements of the same rayon but not covered by the project.

15. Project Results According to independent survey done in 2007, as compared to 2005 in 2007, cattle number increased by 125 %. The horse population – by 102%, sheep - 104% while it increased by 51, 36 and 46% accordingly in neighboring settlements not covered by the project.

16. Project Results The meat produced by the monitored farms in 2007 as compared to 2005 increased by 84 %

17. Project Results • Hay production based on the project perennial fields increased up to 9 ton/ha. Farmers get 6000 tenge/ha ($50) only from hay sale. Cost of agropyron sowing is 3000 tenge/ha and these hay fields may produce fodder during up to 15 years with cost of haymaking less than 2400 tenge ($20). • The two project’s village level milk collection points, monitored by the project, collected 4471 tones of milk by October 2007, which was 135 tones more than the same period in 2006. • Farmers’ income has also considerably increased. Gross income of 20 selected farms was KZT 40 ml in 2007 as compared to KZT 15 ml in 2005 (increase of 174 %). • The watering points provided in the remote areas reduce over grazing around villages and increase grazing of rotated pastures and rangelands in areas away from villages which improves pasture and rangelands management and utilization as well as reduce fires and burning.

18. Project Results • The main reason of the substantial increase of livestock and farmers income in the project area is improved animal feeding based on improved new pastures and hay fields. • Livestock is being released from the villages to the remote areas. It decreases pressure on lands around settelements. • Steppes get a chance to recover ecological balance between vegetation and grazing animals

19. Drylands Management Project • The question is How to better use the results for greater ecological social and and economic benefits of the countries in the region? • Would some of these experiences of Shetski project be of interest in other countries in the region?

20. Project Results The public awareness efforts on TV and radio, field days, training, workshops, visits and tours have also helped to disseminate the knowledge to policy makers and involved stake holders and beneficiaries and their is considerable interest in Kazakhstan to replicate this sustainable land use to other areas affected by soils degradation.

21. Project Results • Farmers and agro processors already feel the benefits and increasing these activities • Considerable interest by akimats, farmers and enterprises in expanding these activities in other areas of Kazakhstan • The Ministries of Environment Protection and Agriculture are interested in scaling up these activities in Kazakhstan