Abstract: The study on which this dissemination note is based points to the need for awareness of the sensitivities surrounding interethnic relations in the Central Asian countries in future World Bank operations in the region. Two main reasons account for this. First, the political identities of many peoples of Central Asia are more closely aligned to ethnic affiliation that to nation states. Second projects that will require the acquisition of land will need to be cognizant of historical claims and counterclaims based upon ethnic considerations. States boundaries have been changed periodically during the twentieth century, both to accommodate the political expediencies of the former USSR as well as to divide and rule the various ethnic groups. The newly independent countries of Central Asia - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikisan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan - each include a number of different ethnic groups, in addition to more recent immigrants, such as Russians, Germans, and Ukrainians. The Bank needs to take a cautious approach to project initiation and development in sensitive areas, taking account of past disputes and current tensions; and second, the Bank needs to conduct rapid pre-project appraisals and social assessments related to ethnicity and build these into the identification, design, and development phases of projects supported in Central Asia. |
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