Another meeting of the Interstate Commission for Sustainable Development of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) took place in Astana on March 28th. The meeting included a report on the work done by IFAS during Kazakhstan's chairmanship (2022-2024), the implementation of decisions from the previous meeting, and other environmental cooperation issues in the region.
At the conclusion of the meeting, decisions were signed, and the transfer of chairmanship responsibilities from Kazakhstan to Tajikistan was conducted. Kazakhstan's Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, E. Nysanbayev, highlighted the increasing need for joint cooperation in the face of growing global and regional environmental challenges.
The First Deputy Chairman of the Committee for Environmental Protection of Tajikistan, Zarafо Kiyomzoda, emphasized the commitment of intergovernmental structures and international organizations to collectively address the region's environmental issues. Over the years, IFAS has laid the groundwork for improving the institutional and legal framework to define priority areas for regional cooperation development.
She also informed the meeting participants about IFAS's work plans for 2024-2026 under Tajikistan's chairmanship. Executive Director of the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia (CAREC), Zafar Mahmudov, pointed out that Central Asian countries are facing serious challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation, and water resource reduction.
Acknowledging the severity of these issues, Mahmudov stressed the effectiveness of joint actions in addressing them, citing the experience of CAREC. The meeting reaffirmed the commitment to collaborative efforts in addressing environmental challenges in the region, highlighting the importance of regional cooperation for sustainable development.
