Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan

A course from May 22 to 26 will help journalists from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan improve their coverage of issues related to two of the region’s longest cross-border rivers: the Chui and the Talas.

The Almaty office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is organizing the course with help from MediaNet, the Counterpart Consortium, Kazakhstan's Mineral Resources Ministry, and Kyrgyzstan's Agriculture and Water Management Ministry.

The event is open to print, radio and television journalists interested in learning more about political issues related to cross-border management of the rivers.

Kyrgyzstan is home to more than 3,500 rivers and provides water for neighboring countries, including Kazakhstan. International agencies warn that both countries have severely high levels of water contamination. This is especially grave as much of the population depends on rivers as their source for fresh water.

OSCE: http://www.osce.org/almaty/item_6_18736.html.