Aral Sea Bank's restoration projects, especially in the North Aral, were giving rise to some unexpected, tentative relief in what had been an extremely pessimistic picture. The future of the Aral Sea and the responsibility for its survival are now in the hands of the five countries: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan. In 1994, they adopted the Aral Sea Basin Programmme. The Programme's four objectives are: The first phase of the plan effectively began with the first involvement from the World Bank in 1992, and was in operation until 1997. It was ineffectual for a number of reasons, but mainly because
Uzbekistan and Oriental Music Uzbekistan and Oriental Music Uzbekistan and Oriental Music are related because the region exerted a significant influence in oriental music's development. The ancient states of Transoxiana such as Sogdiana, Baktria, Choch played an important role in trade between the East and the West along the Silk Road and in cultural and intellectual exchange between those civilizations. Transoxian craftsmen and merchants exported their goods and took with them musicians, dancers and singers. Artifacts found both in China and Uzbekistan provide clear evidence of such cultural “tours”. The figurines made of clay, bronze and other materials depict men and women with musical