National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change of the Republic of Uzbekistan

The event was opened by Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy E. Cirielli, who noted the large-scale work carried out by the Government of Uzbekistan on the dried-up bottom of the Aral Sea and expressed the readiness of the Italian government to help solve environmental and water problems in Central Asia. 

In his speech, J. Kazbekov told the participants of the session about the basic principles of the development of New Uzbekistan, which include "green" development, increasing the share of renewable energy sources (RES), the introduction of ecological transport, and achieving the area of green cover by 2030 by 30% of the territory of the republic. Taking into account the need for a scientifically based approach to solving environmental problems, the Deputy Minister expressed readiness to increase cooperation with leading Italian scientific bodies in this field on the basis of the Central Asian University of Environmental and Climate Change Studies (Green University), established on the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. 

Kazbekov noted the importance of continuing work on restoring the ecosystem of the Aral Sea region, which negatively affects socio-economic and environmental conditions in a transboundary context. 

During the session, the participants were informed about the importance of water security, the intensive melting of glaciers, the importance of energy security and the transition to green energy to achieve carbon neutrality, and other environmental issues in Central Asia. E. Stravato, Chief Executive Officer of the state engineering company “Sogesid S.p.A.”, also spoke about planned projects in Central Asian countries aimed at preventing climate change, conserving water resources, combating desertification, preserving biodiversity, restoring soils, and promoting socio-economic regeneration. 

At the same time, for the effective implementation of projects, close ties will be established with the Universities of Rome (Tor Vergata and La Sapienza), international financial institutions, and “RemTech” (the Italian Center for Environmental Technologies specializing in restoration, regeneration, and sustainable development of territories). 

At the end of the session, a Declaration of Intent was signed between the Italian Agency for the Development of Cooperation (AICS) and the state engineering company “Sogesid S.p.A.” for the development of an operational model and environmental restoration with a pilot project in the Aral Sea basin in Central Asia.