Kyrgyzstan

Country profile

Located in the high mountains of Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked, lower middle-income country. Over 90 per cent of the country is over 1,000m above sea level, and many mountain areas are covered year round with ice and snow.

The majority of its 6.5 million people live in the foothills and valleys, exposing them to floods, landslides, mudflows and avalanches. Communities in remote mountain areas are particularly vulnerable to these hazards because they can easily be cut off from the country's economic and healthcare centres. Because of its location along several seismic fault lines, Kyrgyzstan also experiences frequent earthquakes.

There is great seasonal variation in temperatures, with summer temperatures rising above 40°C and winter temperatures falling as low as -49°C at higher altitudes. In other areas, winter temperatures are not as extreme, but can remain below freezing for weeks at a time. Although only 7 per cent of the country’s land is arable, agriculture employs one in three people and accounts for 25 per cent of gross domestic product. Agriculture is also highly vulnerable to the hydrometeorological hazards listed.

In an average year, disasters cause approximately 35 million US dollars in damage and affect up to 200,000 people in the country. Hazard events disproportionately impact vulnerable populations such as those living in poverty, those in remote areas, single-parent households, the elderly, and minorities. This is of particular importance because the INFORM Global Risk Index ranks Kyrgyzstan as having a high or very high vulnerability to potential hazards, coupled with very low coping capacity. Though Kyrgyzstan has reduced poverty levels from 80 per cent to 30 per cent, increasing extreme weather events and climate change threaten to jeopardize these advances and push at-risk communities back into poverty.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Kyrgyz Republic coordinates disaster responses and acts as the Secretariat for the Inter-Ministerial Commission for Elimination of Natural Disasters and their aftermath in the country. The National System of Civil Protection protects the population and territories in emergency situations, in peace and in wartime. The Inter-Ministerial Commission of Civil Protection  is the coordinating body of the National System of Civil Protection at the national level. The prime minister acts as the head of the Inter-Ministerial Commission of Civil Protection, and the minister of emergencies as the first deputy.

The Disaster Response Coordination Unit is a consultative coordinating body, established by the Ministry of Emergency Situations with the UN country team and representatives of donors and international organizations. It is aimed at developing and implementing joint policy and strategy in disaster response, as well as decision-making policy for humanitarian relief. It also enhances collaboration and coordination around disaster response between the government, UN agencies, Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, local and international NGOs, and donor organizations.

The Red Crescent Society of Kyrgyzstan signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Emergency Situations , which clearly defines its role and responsibilities in disaster management.