UNEP plans to establish Country Office in Tashkent

On May 11, 2019, the delegation of Uzbekistan headed by Chairman of the State Committee on Ecology and Environmental Protection, Bahrom Kuchkarov, met with the Head of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Joyce Msuya and the Executive Secretary of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions Rolph Paye, the MFA said.

According to the Permanent Mission of Uzbekistan at the UN Office and other international organizations in Geneva, the UN representatives supported the ongoing reforms in our country in the field of environmental protection and environmental safety. A high assessment was given to the law “On ratification of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants” signed by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on May 8, 2019.

Joyce Msuya stressed the readiness of the organization she heads to provide all practical assistance to the efforts of the Government of Uzbekistan in the areas of biodiversity conservation and waste management, in which the parties have a large untapped potential. She said that UNEP is studying the interests, needs and expectations of the Uzbek side on environmental issues in order to further develop mutually beneficial cooperation.

Rolph Paye spoke in favor of strengthening and expanding cooperation with Uzbek partners within the framework of the Basel and Stockholm conventions signed by our country.

The UN functionaries expressed their readiness to assist in the effective implementation of the environmental policy of Uzbekistan by:

- joint organization of the next meeting of the countries participating in the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer in 2020 in Tashkent;

- practical implementation of the provisions of the Stockholm Convention in Uzbekistan;

- intensifying work on the preparation and attraction of donor funds for the joint implementation of national and regional projects, including in the field of reducing the negative effects of climate change;

- exploring the possibility of establishing a UNEP Country Office in Tashkent.