The dis-integration of the Soviet Union has led to changes in agricultural and natural resource management in the Central Asian successor states. The book addresses the reform process in the agricultural and water management sector at the local level in Uzbekistan. The focus is on the privatization of agriculture and the shift from state and collective farms to Farm Organizations and to Water User Associations. The study uses political theory, social theory and new institutional economics to analyze and examine institutions and institutional change. Particular attention is given to key stakeholders in the agricultural sector and in water management organizations and to how they implemented the change.

The Author: Kai Wegerich graduated from the School of Oriental and African Studies (London) in 2003. During his doctoral studies he worked as a research consultant for different international organisations on organisational aspects of water management. After having received his Ph.D. he was mainly working on the implementation of agricultural and water management reforms in Central Asia. Since 2004 he has been Assistant Professor for Irrigation and Development at the Wageningen University.