Xiplomacy: China-Central Asia cooperation: Palmy past, rosy future

BREAD AND BUTTER, AND A BETTER LIFE

Water is life, and with water anything is possible. But for Kyrgyz farmers like Evgeny Yakovlev, there was a time when getting water became a big problem.

"Water is not enough. (We have) constant queues. It is very difficult to get water in a timely manner," said Yakovlev, who has been growing crops for 15 years in a village called Kara-Oi, which lies on the northern shore of Kyrgyzstan's Issyk-Kul Lake.

Yakovlev has four hectares of land, on which he nurtures about 1,000 cherry, apple and pear trees, as well as clover and barley. Every summer, Yakovlev needs to water his plants at least three times a day, but the old irrigation system built decades ago could not deliver enough water.

To solve the water problem in Kara-Oi and villages alike, the Kyrgyz government initiated a project in May 2018 allocated from a Chinese grant to reconstruct the country's irrigation system.

Under the project, a reservoir was built by China Railway No.5 Engineering Group Co., Ltd in Kara-Oi with a capacity of 470,000 cubic meters of water. A total of 330 hectares of undeveloped land were put into operation, and the water supply was increased on an area of over 1,000 hectares.

"Before, it was very difficult with water ... Now it's better. We are grateful to the builders," said Arstanbek Zhundubaev, head of the Water Users Association of Kara-Oi.

Ensuring a good life for the people means going beyond water, food and other daily necessities to touch on the experience of life, for example, by making journeys safe and sound. And this is exactly what China and Kyrgyzstan have been cooperating on -- since 2001, about 300 km of roads and more than 10 bridges have been built and reconstructed with joint efforts from both sides.

"More than 20 years, China Road and Bridge Corporation has been implementing large projects in Kyrgyzstan in the road industry," said Ulan Uezbaev, deputy director of the Department of Transport and Road Infrastructure Development of the Bishkek Mayor's Office. "During the implementation of projects, the company also hired citizens of Kyrgyzstan, who learned a lot. I hope that our cooperation will continue."

"This is the street where my sister and I walk ourselves to school each morning," Kasyet Azamatovna, a young girl living in Bishkek, pointed to the newly-paved road outside her front door.

"Look how smooth and neat it is!" she said, bubbling with excitement.