Uzbekistan is committed to preserving the planet for future generations

On November 30 – December 2, the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to visit the United Arab Emirates and will take part in the World Summit on Combating Climate Change, which will be held within the framework of the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-28) in Dubai.

The purpose of these events is to discuss global climate change, combat its impacts, and assess and take stock of progress since the adoption of the Paris Agreement.

The Summit program will include a High-Level Segment for Heads of State and Government, sessions on food, energy, youth and education, health, environment, water resources, climate action financing, thematic events, and round tables on the implementation of COP-28.

Delegations from about 140 countries at the level of heads of state, government and ministers, representatives of international organizations, NGOs, experts, and scientific and public circles are planned to participate in the Conference.

It is worth noting that the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted in 1992 and covers almost all countries of the world. The Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement are documents adopted based on and as a follow-up to the UNFCCC.

Uzbekistan joined the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change on 20 June 1993 and ratified the Kyoto Protocol in 1999. In 2017, by signing the Paris Agreement, Uzbekistan assumed several commitments, including the main quantitative commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions per unit of GDP by 35 percent of the 2010 level by 2030.

As a party to the UN Framework Convention, Uzbekistan prepares and submits to the Convention Secretariat regular climate reporting - national communications, biennial reports, adaptation plans, develops and updates nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Uzbekistan’s Fourth National Communication on Climate Change, which will reflect the country’s climate change activities over the past five years, is currently being finalized.

Today, as the world faces the consequences of climate change, loss of biodiversity, and pollution of the planet, and the Central Asian region is increasingly feeling the effects of global warming, Uzbekistan has fundamentally revised its environmental, agricultural, and water management policies.

In particular, Uzbekistan has approved several conceptual documents to address environmental issues, preserve biodiversity, and achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. These include the Strategy for Transition to a Green Economy until 2030, the Concept of Environmental Protection until 2030, the Strategy for Solid Waste Management until 2028, and the Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation until 2028. In general, the Republic has established a solid legal and regulatory framework, including more than 40 laws in the field of nature and environmental protection.

To prevent aggravation of climatic and socio-economic challenges caused by the drying up of the Aral Sea, seeds and seedlings of desert plants are being planted in the Priaralie zone in an area of 1.8 million hectares. It is planned to cover 2.3 million hectares with green cover by 2030.

At the same time, realizing that climate challenges are transboundary, Uzbekistan has significantly stepped up efforts to consolidate the Central Asian region in combating climate change and adapting to its consequences.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, speaking at the jubilee Fifth Consultative Meeting of Central Asian Heads of State in Dushanbe on 14 September, proposed the adoption of a regional strategy on climate change adaptation, which is intended to become an important contribution to climate sustainability and «green» development.

The climate agenda is also being actively promoted within other international formats. In particular, within the framework of the SCO, our Head of State stressed the need to strengthen coordination and practical cooperation on decarbonization and the introduction of «clean» technologies, the development of «smart» agriculture, and water conservation. At the 16th summit of the Economic Cooperation Organisation, the leader of Uzbekistan proposed to create a high-level platform on environmental issues, as well as to hold its first conference within the framework of the upcoming Samarkand Climate Forum in 2024.

At the meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Organisation of Turkic States, the establishment of a permanent acting Turkic Environmental Forum at the ministerial level was noted.

At the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, the head of our state dwelt separately on the consequences of the Aral Sea tragedy and measures taken by the authorities to mitigate the situation, proposing to establish the post of UN Special Representative on Water Resources and the «Central Asian Climate Dialogue».

In his address to the 21st session of the Committee to Review the Implementation of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, held for the first time in Samarkand from 13-17 November, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reiterated that Uzbekistan and the entire Central Asian region as a whole are particularly exposed to the negative impact of climate change and are fully feeling the dire consequences of the social and environmental problems caused by it. In this regard, he called on the international expert community to support Uzbekistan’s initiatives to adopt the Samarkand Declaration on Sand and Dust Storms.

In short, the importance of the FCCC platform for the whole world, including the Central Asian region and Uzbekistan, is indisputable. The scale of the forthcoming event in Dubai is determined not only by the number of participants - more than 80,000 people - but also by the globality of the problem under discussion.

The participation of the President of Uzbekistan in this event will reaffirm the commitment to «green growth and development», readiness to consolidate efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change and fulfill the commitments undertaken to achieve the goals of the UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement.