Agricultural development, climate adaptation and energy transition in the Kyrgyz Republic

Project Background

Climate change poses a serious threat to food security in the Kyrgyz Republic, particularly for poor and vulnerable households. Specifically, effective adaptation in the agricultural sector is increasingly recognized as a critical policy component for reducing vulnerability and mitigating adverse climatic impacts. Improvements in smallholder agricultural systems have the potential to address food security, via increases in income in conjunction with mitigation of the adverse effects of climate change.

Moreover, policymakers in the Kyrgyz Republic increasingly seek empirical evidence on the relationship between investments made in energy infrastructure, the energy policies they implement, and welfare improvements at the household level. Specifically, accurate data on household energy use, combined with other data on wellbeing (including consumption, income, health, and education) is essential to monitor progress in the household energy transition from traditional biomass fuels to modern fuels and electricity and to evaluate the effect of government energy policies on living conditions.

Project Objectives

We will collect and analyse Life in Kyrgyzstan panel survey data to study climate change adaptation, food security, and energy transition among Kyrgyz households, especially in rural areas.

The generated data and evidence will support the government, academia, and think-tanks of the Kyrgyz Republic to formulate core policy recommendations. Specifically, they will help to to monitor welfare, poverty, inclusiveness and resilience of the population in a granular manner for just-in-time decision-making and inform the design of national policies, focused on the welfare of the poor and vulnerable households, and monitoring progress towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).