Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Holding the next summit of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) on 15 September in Dushanbe, after a 5-year break, became an important event not only on a regional, but also on an international scale.

The results of the meeting of the Council of Heads of State-founders of IFAS attract close attention of expert and analytical circles, as it is related to global water and environmental problems.

It can be stated that this event will undoubtedly give a new impetus to the further deepening of regional cooperation in the field of efficient use of water and energy resources and environmental protection, as well as solving environmental and socio-economic problems in Central Asia.

According to the Head of our state, today the Fund has turned into a unique platform for regional cooperation in the water and environmental sphere. The role of such important structures of the Fund as the Interstate Coordination Water Commission and the two basin associations operating under it - Amudarya and Syrdarya - was noted.

Thanks to the efforts of these bodies, the conflict-free distribution of water resources from interstate sources, the operability of all interstate canals and structures, as well as scientific and information support for the decision-making process are ensured.

It was emphasized that the role of IFAS increases even more in the context of the emergence of new challenges and threats due to global climate change. First of all, this is intensive melting of glaciers, drought, soil degradation, increased incidence of natural disasters and abnormal weather events.

In his speech at the summit, the President of Uzbekistan noted the importance of further improving the legal framework and modernizing the institutional mechanisms of the Fund.

In this regard, the Head of our state drew attention to the need to carry out an inventory and review of key documents and agreements, including the Regulations on the Fund, which was adopted more than 20 years ago.

The President of Uzbekistan emphasized that the Fund’s main documents should be based on generally recognized international norms, principles and mutual obligations.

Improving the organizational structure and legal framework of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea is currently one of the most pressing issues on the way to a new stage of development of the Fund, in which all members of the Organization are interested.

It was also stated that Uzbekistan stands for a radical improvement in the activities of IFAS structures, in the form of expanding their competencies and strengthening human and technical potential.

The President drew the attention of partner countries to the importance of increasing the efficiency of project implementation within the framework of the Action Program to assist the countries of the Aral Sea basin. In this context, he proposed developing appropriate “road maps” providing for the implementation of regional projects with the definition of specific volumes and sources of financing, as well as agreed schedules for their implementation.

At the same time, the need to strengthen systemic interaction on issues of attracting investments, technologies and technical assistance to promote priority regional projects was noted.

It was proposed to convene a special regional conference, within the framework of which issues of accelerating the implementation of joint projects with the involvement of foreign partners, leading international institutions and donor organizations will be considered.

The working bodies of the Fund, with the participation of international consultants, have been tasked with developing long-term Development Plans for the Amudarya and SyrDarya basins. In this context, the importance of modeling various scenarios for the development of the situation in the basins of these rivers is indicated.

The development and implementation of basin plans will create the opportunity for water management organizations to conduct a comprehensive analysis and assessment of the existing water management situation, and plan water use for the basin for the short-term and long-term. Basin planning takes into account possible trends in economic development, demographic forecasts, increasing signs of the impact of climate change and other factors influencing the development of basins.

The head of Uzbekistan in his speech placed special emphasis on the need to organize work with youth at the regional level in matters of creating a culture of respect for water and other natural resources, supporting youth initiatives and start-ups through the adoption of a special program.

The President of Uzbekistan specifically focused on issues of close cooperation in the field of preventing further degradation of ecosystems, primarily in the Aral Sea region.

In our country, significant work has already been done in this regard. As is known, in a relatively short period of time, forest planting was carried out on an area of 1.7 million hectares on the dried seabed; in the next two years, it is planned to create protective green belts on another 400 thousand hectares.

In order to mitigate the consequences of the environmental disaster and preserve biodiversity in the Aral Sea region, natural parks, reserves and state reserves were created on an area of more than 3.5 million hectares. It is noteworthy that today the area of protected natural areas in the Aral Sea region is 4.6 million hectares.

At the summit, the focus was also on strengthening comprehensive cooperation in the water and energy sector. The need to strengthen cooperation in the field of water conservation was emphasized.

Overall, the summit was truly historic. This is primarily due to the fact that the Heads of the founding states of the Fund agreed to comprehensively intensify its activities for the benefit of the future of the peoples of Central Asia.

Acting Head of Department

N. Khasanov