24/09/2019 (Agence Europe) – The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Uzbek Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Tuesday 24 September paving the way for a €100 million investment programme to support international reconstruction efforts in the Aral Sea region. The EIB is planning a two-tiered investment programme. The first will see the rehabilitation and modernization of obsolete irrigation systems in the Amu Darya Valley, an important factor in supplying water to the Aral Sea, and the second will restore the region's agricultural land. The programme covers the Karakalpakstan region, which has a population of 1.8 million. (CG)