The World Bank Group has approved a new large-scale investment to modernize Tajikistan’s water and irrigation systems, aiming to improve agricultural productivity, strengthen water management, and support climate resilience across the country.
The Second Strengthening Water and Irrigation Management (SWIM-2) project will be financed through a $75 million grant from the International Development Association (IDA). The initiative is expected to benefit around 470,000 farmers and rural residents by improving irrigation services and expanding economic opportunities in rural areas.
The project will rehabilitate and modernize irrigation infrastructure covering approximately 100,000 hectares of agricultural land. Key upgrades include the restoration of at least 20 pumping stations, improvements to gravity-fed irrigation systems, and rehabilitation of major infrastructure such as the Dangara diversion tunnel and the Beshkent hydrotechnical facility.
These improvements are expected to significantly enhance efficiency, increasing water conveyance performance from 60% to 80%, while also delivering energy savings of about 65,000 MWh and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 29,000 tons of CO₂ annually.
Beyond infrastructure upgrades, SWIM-2 also focuses on institutional reforms. The project will support the digital transformation of Tajikistan’s water management systems, strengthen Water User Associations, and improve basin-level irrigation administration. It also introduces a Carbon Finance Program to help the sector generate long-term climate-related revenue.
The initiative is projected to create around 8,160 new and better-paying jobs, while improving the resilience of approximately 180,000 agricultural livelihoods and enhancing food security for about 200,000 people.
International cooperation plays a key role in the project, with additional co-financing pledges from the OPEC Fund for International Development and the Islamic Development Bank, bringing total potential financing to around $175 million. Technical support is also provided through the Central Asia Water and Energy Program (CAWEP).
The World Bank emphasized that the investment supports broader goals of reducing poverty, improving shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development in Tajikistan through more efficient and climate-resilient water and agricultural systems.
