Tashkent, Uzbekistan, March 15, 2024 – From March 12th to 15th, 2024, the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Uzbekistan attended the “Peace Forest Initiative (PFI): Fostering Land Restoration and Sustainable Management” workshop, organized by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), held in Tashkent, bringing together participants from the five Central Asian countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The event aimed to catalyze transboundary cooperation to mitigate land degradation and address climate-related challenges, reinforcing the commitment of regional stakeholders towards sustainable agri-food system transformations.
GGGI sought collaboration opportunities with regional partners, shared expertise, and gained valuable insights into sustainable land management and climate resilience practices. discussions at the workshop centered on integrated actions concerning land, biodiversity, and climate, focusing on enhancing monitoring, reporting, and investments in Central Asia’s agriculture and food systems. GGGI acknowledges the pivotal role of the PFI in fostering regional cooperation to mitigate conflict risks associated with land resource degradation and promote sustainable development and peacebuilding across borders.
Dr. Aaron Russell, GGGI Uzbekistan Country Representative, briefly introduced GGGI’s Green Rehabilitation Investment Project for Karakalpakstan Republic to Address the Impacts of the Aral Sea Crisis (Aral Sea GRIP), funded by KOICA. The project supports disaster-risk reduction, food security, livelihoods enhancement, and job creation by integrating the dissemination of well-established climate-smart agriculture techniques and transformational support for green entrepreneurship and investment by farmers and MSMEs in Karakalpakstan. Dr. Russell outlined some of the key achievements of GGGI Uzbekistan’s Aral Sea GRIP to date, including the enhancement of climate change and sand and dust storm risk mitigation technologies for 13,996 youth, women and men, training 386 farming and agribusiness entrepreneurs in CSA technologies and green business models, planting 13,516 windbreak trees a part of CSA models implementation, the establishment of online Business Development Platform and ongoing efforts to provide the necessary investment advisory analyses and support to mobilize at least $30m to support scaling up CSA by farmers.
Dr. Aaron Russell’s presentation further emphasized the urgent need for integrated solutions to tackle interconnected policy, awareness-raising, technical capacity building, and financing barriers hindering the promotion of green and climate-smart technologies among beneficiaries. He stressed the significance of investing in ecological, climatological, and bio-physical research alongside the development of sociological, economic, and institutional capacities. Dr. Russell underscored the importance of exploring diverse financial mechanisms for regional initiatives, highlighting the limitations of relying solely on national governments and development assistance projects. He also emphasized the value of drawing insights from the experiences of existing regional networks and partnerships in Central Asia, as well as leveraging established regional centers of research and learning excellence to drive sustainable development efforts forward.
Dr. Russell concluded his interventions with on an optimistic note:
“As highlighted in the UNGA Resolution declaring the Aral Sea a Zone of Innovation, we should not limit our thinking to technical solutions and their financing options as a response to the environmental crises of the past, we need to identify new technologies and investment solutions that fit the needs of today.”
GGGI’s participation reflects its strategy to forge dynamic partnerships to meet member countries’ expectations across Central Asia, leveraging successful approaches from Uzbekistan and global best practices. GGGI reaffirms its commitment to collaborating with partners such as UNCCD to advance green growth, climate action, and sustainable development in the region.