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

The international initiative was organized by the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change together with the Agency for Waste Management and Circular Economy Development, with the support of Coca-Cola, Yandex Uzbekistan, and O‘zsanoatqurilishbank. Across the country, 55.7 tons of waste were collected during the campaign.

Background: World Cleanup Day has been held annually since 2018, engaging more than 114 million people across 211 countries. In Uzbekistan, plogging events are organized each year with the participation of environmental specialists, eco-activists, youth and the general public. These initiatives have become a tradition, aimed at clearing public spaces of litter.

As part of this year’s campaign, employees of the ministry and the agency responsible for regional sectors, representatives of Tashkent region and city administrations, as well as youth, eco-activists, and media volunteers cleaned designated areas along the shore of Lake Tashkent.

At the opening ceremony, ZarRina Abdullaeva, Head of Department at the Ministry of Ecology, emphasized:

“Our main goal is to change society’s attitude toward waste and thereby reduce its generation. In fact, protecting the cleanliness of the environment is not something we should do only on Cleanup Day, but every single day.”

Sharifbek Hasanov, Director of the Agency for Waste Management and Circular Economy Development, noted that waste is one of the key drivers of climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental pollution:

“According to statistics, 19,000–20,000 tons of waste are generated in our country every day. This includes metal, glass, paper, plastic and food waste. In 2024, out of 14 million tons of waste collected, only 5.2 percent was recycled.”

He also highlighted that Uzbekistan has joined the global World Cleanup Day network and actively participates in this annual international campaign, which this year was carried out on an unprecedented scale.

During the plogging event at Lake Tashkent, 962 kilograms of waste were collected, including 200 kilograms of plastic bottles that were sent for recycling. The competition results were as follows:

1st place: the Forestry Agency team (223 kg of waste collected)

2nd place: the “Young Ecologists” team (175 kg)

3rd place: the “Toza Hudud” enterprise team from Tashkent region (155 kg)

In addition, young eco-activist artists created drawings on the theme of environmental protection. At the closing ceremony, winners, runners-up, active participants and partner organizations were duly awarded.

For reference: Last year, World Cleanup Day efforts in Uzbekistan resulted in the collection of 36.5 tons of waste.

Such initiatives nurture a sense of responsibility toward nature, promote environmental sustainability and help transform waste into an integral part of the circular economy by advancing rational models of consumption and production.