Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Uzbekistan is taking critical steps to strengthen environmental protection and sustainability in its agrifood sector, with a particular focus on reducing harmful pesticide use.

As environmental degradation and climate change pose increasing risks—especially in terms of water scarcity and soil health—the country is prioritizing greener, more resilient agricultural practices. In this context, promoting sustainable alternatives to chemical inputs is essential for safeguarding ecosystems, protecting public health, and securing the long-term productivity of the land.

 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is supporting this transformation through Regional Technical Platform on Green Agriculture. Uzbekistan is one of the pilot countries, along with Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, o assess how its current strategies and policies align with the principles of green agriculture—those that promote efficiency, inclusiveness, resilience, and sustainability, while ensuring better production, nutrition, environment, and quality of life for all.

Complementing these efforts, the government of Uzbekistan declared 2025 as the year of environmental protection and green economy. This national activity aims to boost efforts for a more sustainable and resilient future for Uzbekistan. FAO—together with the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change and with funding from the European Union—is implementing the project “Technical Assistance for Sound Management of Hazardous Chemicals in Uzbekistan.” As part of this project,a national workshop on green agriculture in Uzbekistan was held to promote environmental sustainability and biological plant protection strategies on 15 April 2025 in Tashkent.

Rovshan Fayziev, Director of Center for Specialized Analytical Control in the Field of Environmental Protection under the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental protection and Climate change of the Republic of Uzbekistan emphasized that Uzbekistan is highly vulnerable to the climate change impacts, especially negative impacts on quantity and quality of freshwater resources. “National climate efforts go hand in hand with attempts on transition to green economy, including greening agrifood systems for a more resilient future to increase efficiency and halt degradation in natural resources”, explained Fayziev.

The need to strengthen cooperation among countries in addressing the environmental challenges in agrifood systems led to create the concept of green agriculture, mentioned FAO Agriculture Officer Tania Santivanez, the lead technical officer on the project. She underscored that “transition to green agriculture requires fundamental changes through partnership assistance, capacity‑building, technology transfer and financial support. As part this workshop, we found an opportunity to discuss how to achieve climate resilience, reduced chemical inputs, and sustainable rural development in Uzbekistan”, said Tania Santivanez.

FAO will continue working closely with national and international partners to support this shift, advancing environmentally sound solutions that contribute to a more sustainable future for agriculture in Uzbekistan.