SWRI Participated in the Second Plenary Meeting of the International Network of Salt-Affected Soils (INSAS)

  According to the International Relations Affairs of the Soil and Water Research Institute (SWRI), the Second Plenary Meeting of the “International Network of Salt-affected Soils (INSAS)” was held on May 22-26, 2023 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in hybrid modality (in-person and online).

  This event has been made coincident, by the GSP Secretariat, with the training meeting of GLOSOLAN on Salt Affected Soils, as well as with the meeting of the sub-regional Eurasian Soil Partnership (EASP).

  About 150 participants came together, including representatives from several countries such as Australia, Armenia, Bangladesh, China, France, Georgia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, the Kingdom of Netherlands, Pakistan, Senegal, Spain, Turkmenistan, the United Republic of Tanzania, the United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan.

  Dr. Rezaei a scientific member of the SWRI and the head of the water working group of the INSAS network after the biennial report of this working group expressed the problems and challenges of using low-quality water and emphasized the need for future research in this field.

  After being consulted by the GSP-INSAS Coordinator during the second day of the meeting, the members of INSAS supported the continuity of the actual network officers which Dr. Rezaei is appointed as the Vice-chair of INSAS for 2023-2025.

  Also the international pilots were visited in the salt-affected soils of Uzbekistan located in Nukus, Karakalpakstan, which was one of the programs of this general assembly. In these pilots, reforestation and forestation, pilot projects for cultivation of halophytes and soil and saline water management with the joint cooperation of Tottori University of Japan, Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT), Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources of the Netherlands, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, the World Bank, Korea of Green Growth and The Eurasian Center for Food Security was operational.