BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 4. Uzbekistan held talks
with Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP), on the sidelines of the Eighth
Assembly of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), focusing on
expanding regional cooperation on climate and environmental
protection, Trend
reports via the National Committee on Ecology and Climate
Change.
The meeting brought together Aziz Abdukhakimov, adviser to the
President of Uzbekistan and chairman of the National Committee on
Ecology and Climate Change, Erlan Nysanbayev, Minister of Ecology
and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan, Bahodur Sheralizoda, head of
Tajikistan’s Environmental Protection Committee, as well as
representatives from Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan.
Discussions centered on strengthening environmental cooperation
across Central Asia and deepening engagement with UNEP.
Participants noted that environmental and climate issues have
gained unprecedented political attention in the region in recent
years, highlighted by initiatives such as the Samarkand Climate
Forum 2025 and the Regional Environmental Summit in Astana.
A key topic of the talks was air quality improvement and the
development of a regional clean air coalition. The sides explored a
joint initiative with UNEP to reduce the impact of sand and dust
storms on public health and urban environments. Officials said the
project could evolve into a comprehensive regional program
featuring air quality monitoring systems, data sharing mechanisms,
and coordinated efforts to reduce transboundary pollution.
Participants also discussed the creation of a Regional
Environmental Atlas of Central Asia. Uzbekistan presented its
experience in developing a national environmental atlas in
cooperation with UNEP, launched in 2025, as a model for a broader
regional platform consolidating environmental data and tracking
ecological trends across Central Asia.
The meeting further addressed the region’s positioning under the
Montreal Protocol and the strengthening of Central Asia’s
institutional representation within the United Nations and UNEP
frameworks.
Officials reaffirmed their commitment to expanding cooperation
with UNEP to promote sustainable development, environmental
resilience, and climate security across Central Asia.
