Thursday, March 25, 2021 — On 25 March, the Republic of Uzbekistan officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) to formalize their partnership and the commencement of the GGGI Country Program in 2021. Due to COVID-19, the signing took place virtually with the Chairman of the State Committee for Ecology and Environmental Protection (SCEEP) Mr. Alisher Maksudov, and GGGI Director-General, Dr. Frank Rijsberman, signing the agreement.
The Republic of Uzbekistan became a member of GGGI on 9 March 2019. Since 2019, GGGI has been coordinating with SCEEP, relevant government offices and ministries, and development partners to identify areas of collaboration to support the country in its transition into the green growth path. GGGI has also expressed its support to the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan in greening its economic recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. To ensure close and effective collaboration, a GGGI country office will be established in Tashkent in May 2021.
To kickstart the GGGI Uzbekistan program, the three-year KOICA-funded project “Green Rehabilitation Investment Project for Karakalpakstan Republic to address impacts of the Aral Sea Crisis” will be implemented beginning July 2021. This project will help the Karakalpakstan Republic recover from the adverse impacts of the Aral Sea ecological crisis and establish viable measures to pursue disaster resilient livelihood for communities in the most affected districts. One of the interventions proposed in this project is climate-smart agriculture to improve the agricultural productivity of the sector and consequently provide livelihood opportunities for the region.
Mr Alisher Maksudov, Chairman of the SCEEP noted, “We express our readiness for close collaboration with GGGI and joint implementation of “green” innovative project and pioneering initiatives for rehabilitation of ecosystem in Aral Sea basin which is a step towards achieving the targets of sustainable development in Uzbekistan. The Memorandum of Understanding between the State Committee for Ecology and the GGGI will develop new and strong links between our institutions, and we look forward to the opening of a representative office of GGGI in Tashkent in near future.”
“We are excited to partner with SCEEP to support Uzbekistan’s transition to a green growth pathway. Through this partnership, we are looking forward to implementing a KOICA-funded project to support the Karakalpakstan region of the country address the Aral Sea ecological crisis and make a transition to inclusive, climate-resilient development,” shared Director-General Frank Rijsberman.
Mr. Zokir Saidov, Deputy chief of Mission of the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the Republic of Korea said, “On behalf of the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Korea I would like to congratulate GGGI and SCEEP on such a historic moment of signing the MoU for GGGI’s first country office in Central Asia. The momentous ceremony has become a milestone in further strengthening the relations between GGGI and Uzbekistan. Taking this opportunity, I would like to wish to GGGI successful future green growth collaborations, as well as the preparation of P4G Summit.”