Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) – On 4 July 2023, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part in the regular meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO Member States, which was chaired by India in the format of a videoconference.

During his speech, the head of state announced a number of important initiatives aimed at further development of multifaceted and mutually beneficial cooperation within the Organization.

In particular, special attention was paid to the issues of the "green" agenda. As the leader of Uzbekistan noted, today, without solving the whole range of problems associated with rapid climate change, it is impossible to ensure sustainable development in the SCO space.

In this regard, he stated the need for closer coordination and practical interaction on the SCO platform on issues of adaptation to climate change, decarbonization and the introduction of "green" technologies, the development of "smart" agriculture and water conservation.

Supporting the announcement of 2024 as the Year of Ecology in the SCO space, the head of Uzbekistan proposed, as part of the implementation of the SCO Green Belt Program, to prepare a Joint Action Plan to promote regional environmental projects and introduce green technologies.

Undoubtedly, this initiative is timely and relevant, especially in conditions when all the SCO countries without exception are experiencing the consequences of global climate change.

At the same time, according to experts, the Central Asian region is most prone to climate change due to its geographical location. According to the IMF, over the past 30 years, the temperature in the region has risen by 1.5 degrees, which is 2 times more than the world indicators (0.7 degrees). According to forecasts, until 2050, the temperature may increase by another 1.5-3 degrees.

As a result of climate change, the areas of glaciers are shrinking, the shortage of water resources is growing, the pace of land degradation and desertification is accelerating, and natural disasters (droughts, landslides, mudflows, floods, sandstorms) are becoming more frequent.

Thus, according to experts, over the past 50 years in Central Asia, the area of glaciers has decreased by 30%, and the amount of land covered by the desertification process has increased by 15-20%. According to some calculations, by 2050, a decrease in water resources in the basins of the Syrdarya rivers is expected - up to 5%, and in the Amu Darya - up to 15%. In addition, it is predicted that the provision of water per person in Central Asia may decrease by 25%, and the lack of fresh water will lead to a drop in GDP in the region by 11%.

It is important to emphasize that, within the framework of the SCO, Uzbekistan is making a significant contribution to the fight against climate change and is consistently promoting initiatives aimed at strengthening cooperation in this direction.

In particular, at the SCO summit in Bishkek in 2019, the head of our state proposed to adopt the SCO Green Belt Program in order to introduce modern resource-saving and environmentally friendly technologies in the countries of the Organization.

At the Samarkand SCO summit in 2022, the leader of Uzbekistan initiated the creation of the SCO Climate Council, which should bring together political and public figures, scientists, environmentalists and business circles. This format will improve the efficiency of the development and implementation of projects for climate adaptation, combating desertification and degradation of agricultural land, and introducing water and energy saving technologies.

Along with this, at the summit in Samarkand, on the initiative of the Uzbek side, a number of important documents were adopted aimed at uniting the efforts of the SCO countries and harmonizing their policies to combat the challenges and consequences of climate change. Among them are the Joint Statement on Actions to Response to Climate Change, the SCO Cooperation Program in the Field of Renewable Energy Sources, the Concept of Cooperation between the SCO countries in the field of "smart" agriculture and the introduction of agro-innovations.

In turn, the joint action plan initiated by the Uzbek leader at the New Delhi summit to promote regional environmental projects and the introduction of "green" technologies will increase the effectiveness of multilateral cooperation on environmental protection and environmental security, and will also contribute to the development of common approaches of the SCO countries in matters of mitigation and adaptation to the effects of climate change.

Along with this, the development of this Plan will raise the coordination of the activities of the SCO countries in matters of rational use of water resources, development and implementation of "green" technologies to a new level.

In general, the “climate” agenda promoted by the head of Uzbekistan will contribute to the consolidation of the efforts of the SCO countries in overcoming the consequences of global climate change and will contribute to ensuring sustainable development in the space of the Organization.

Madina Aripova,

chief researcher at ISMI

under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan