The decline in the Caspian Sea level is negatively affecting the economies of coastal countries. The World Bank is ready to provide support to mitigate these consequences and enhance the potential of the Caspian states, Rolande Pryce, the World Bank regional director for the South Caucasus, said at a COP29 event addressing the Caspian Sea's swallowing, Report informs.
She noted that the continuing decline in the Caspian Sea water level is not only an environmental problem but also a limitation on economic development.
"The decline in water levels is already affecting the economies of coastal countries. Some vessels can only be loaded to 50% of their capacity, and some of the installed equipment and built infrastructure is already considered unusable. For this reason, the World Bank study also aims to identify measures that can be implemented to improve the resilience of ports and shipping under current conditions," she said.
Pryce added that a key point for the region is creating a monitoring mechanism that will allow Caspian Sea countries to take interim actions to mitigate and adapt to water levels in this water basin.
According to her, the World Bank and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) are now collaborating on developing a new project aimed at strengthening the capacity of participating countries to preserve the Caspian Sea's biodiversity.
"The Caspian Sea project review, which is expected to be approved on July 20, 2025, aims to help countries manage pollution and improve biodiversity conservation. This will be achieved by strengthening the capacity of three participating countries - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan," she said.
Pryce emphasized that the project complements the countries' ongoing efforts to fulfill the obligations of the Tehran Convention and its related protocols.
"At the national level, the project will support the three countries in developing new protocols and methods for pollution monitoring, as well as identifying new coastal marine protected areas," she said.