Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 13 February, Minister of Ecology, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change, Aziz Abdukhakimov, met with the head of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Carlos Rodriguez.

The Minister congratulated the head of the GEF on successfully holding the 66th meeting of the Global Environment Facility Council in Washington (USA) in early February this year and expressed appreciation for the cooperation in developing regional projects.

"The Central Asian ministers are ready for regional cooperation to restore ecosystems and prevent climate change. Our five countries are interconnected, and the Central Asian region is one ecosystem", Aziz Abdukhakimov said.

For reference, within the framework of the 66th meeting of the GEF Council, US$26 million was allocated to finance 5 projects of the Regional Program "Interconnection of Water and Land Resources of Central Asia (CAWLN) for Ecosystem Restoration, Improved Management of Natural Resources, and Increased Sustainability".

It should be noted that four of the five projects totaling US$ 18.6 million will be implemented with the participation of Uzbekistan and the assistance of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Among them: land restoration in vulnerable ecosystems of Central Asia; strengthening integrated and integrated water resources management in the basins of the Amudarya, Zarafshan, Panj, Syrdarya, and Narin rivers; integrated natural resource management to improve the conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity

In turn, Carlos Rodriguez congratulated the Uzbek side on the successful holding of the 14th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Animals and noted that the event provided an opportunity to bring together ministers of the Central Asian region to make effective decisions.

"I want to express my appreciation to the Minister for their strong political commitment in paving the way for the country to embark on a new era of collaboration aimed at protecting and conserving the vulnerable ecosystems of the region with the financial support of the Global Environment Facility” expressed Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO of the GEF.

During the negotiations, the parties discussed the International Agreement on the High Seas, cooperation with the Central Asian University Green University, and other issues.