The regional programme ‘Green Central Asia, phase II’, implemented by GIZ in cooperation with Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, organized a two-day workshop on the use of the Droughtmap Aral Sea Basin (Droughtmap ASB) drought monitoring tool in Almaty on September 17–18, 2025.
The workshop brought together representatives of hydrometeorological agencies, Ministries of Agriculture, and Ministries of Water from the five Central Asian countries. Participants received detailed information on meteorological drought indicators and indices, and also engaged in practical exercises on estimating and visualizing these indicators using Python and QGIS. In addition, participants learned about the use of open-source geospatial tools for monitoring key water bodies in Central Asia, complementing these data with ground-based observations.
During the interactive sessions, participants shared suggestions for improving the system’s functionality and demonstrated the application of Droughtmap ASB for specific regions in their respective countries.
Droughtmap ASB has been developed in cooperation with the relevant agencies of the Central Asian countries since 2022, with its second phase launched in November 2024.
