Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Minister of Ecology, Environment Protection and Climate Change Aziz Abdukhakimov took part in the high-level conference on climate change of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which was held on 7 July 2023 in Vienna (Austria), the press service of the ministry reports.

The event was also attended by the heads of environmental departments of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

In his report, the Minister of Ecology Aziz Abdukhakimov drew the attention of the participants to the risks of climate change affecting water resources, forecasts for reducing the flow of water in the rivers of Central Asia and water shortage.

The need for a regional system for monitoring, timely exchange of information and knowledge, joint development of regional strategies and adaptation measures, as well as work with youth, support for young scientists in climate change issues was especially noted.

Information was presented on the creation of the Central Asian University for the Study of the Environment and Climate Change, the participants showed a keen interest in creating the first "Green University" in the Central Asian region.

During the visit, a number of high-level meetings were organized, in particular with the OSCE Secretary General H. Schmidt, the US President’s Special Envoy for Climate Issues John Kerry, with the heads of environmental ministries of Central Asian countries, Austria, Georgia, the Czech Republic, Finland, during which the prospects for development of bilateral and multilateral regional cooperation in Uzbekistan and Central Asia in the field of climate change and environmental protection.