The newly appointed Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme in Uzbekistan Akiko Fujii held her first official meeting with the Minister of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change of Uzbekistan Aziz Abdukhakimov, the press service of the UNDP office in Tashkent reported .

During the meeting, the parties signed two agreements, including one marking the beginning of the eighth phase of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Program, which will be launched in 2025.

The GEF Small Grants Program will support the implementation of new national biodiversity targets and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan in line with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

It will engage local communities, civil society actors and academia in the restoration of endangered ecosystems and species by providing technical and financial assistance.

Another project on the continuation of joint actions in support of the nationwide project “Yashil Makon” with the financial support of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and in cooperation with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).

The initiative combines environmental goals with support for Afghan citizens living in Uzbekistan by involving them in the creation and maintenance of tree nurseries to produce planting material for Yashil Makon, the report said.

The project will assist the government in developing a master plan for the Yaşil Makon project based on projections of the achievement of planned targets and taking into account the survival rate of the planted trees. The existing information platform for monitoring the Yaşil Makon initiative will be studied and needs for improvement will be identified.

“I am pleased to inform you about the establishment of the Climate Council under the President of Uzbekistan, which will become the highest advisory body to the head of state on issues of mitigation of the consequences of and adaptation to climate change. Currently, we are in the process of radical transformation not only of the Ministry of Ecology, but also of the entire environmental protection complex. Solving environmental problems and improving environmental management is a priority task in Uzbekistan,” said Minister of Ecology Aziz Abdukhakimov.

UNDP Resident Representative in Uzbekistan Akiko Fujii emphasized: “We look forward to supporting Uzbekistan as it demonstrates its strong commitment and accelerated response to biodiversity, desertification and climate change at COP16 in Colombia (UN Biodiversity Conference from 21 October to 1 November — ed. ), COP16 in Saudi Arabia (UN Land and Drought Conference from 2 to 13 December — ed. ) and COP29 in Azerbaijan (UN Climate Conference from 11 to 22 November), setting more ambitious and far-reaching goals. Now is the time to deepen our partnership with the Ministry and increase our collective impact.”

To improve wildlife monitoring capacity, a joint UNDP and Ministry of Ecology project funded by the GEF has provided eight protected areas in the Aral Sea region with equipment worth over 2 billion soums.

Protected areas are expected to improve their patrolling and protection capabilities by using binoculars, camera traps, cameras, GPS devices, printers, mountaineering tents, field uniforms, sleeping bags, and measuring instruments such as automatic weather stations, thermometers and optical microscopes.

In addition, the South Ustyurt National Park received a field monitoring station and a vehicle equipped with a refrigerator and a desalination plant, as well as other necessary equipment.

https://www.gazeta.uz/ru/2024/08/07/undp/