On 12-13 February 2025, Tashkent, Uzbekistan hosted a regional workshop for Central Asian countries on SDG indicator 6.5.2 and the sharing of experiences in using reporting as a tool for transboundary cooperation.
The regional workshop was organised to ensure the exchange of best practices in the preparation and use of reporting on SDG indicator 6.5.2 for the development of water cooperation, as well as to facilitate the development of concrete measures to achieve SDG target 6.5 in Central Asia.
The workshop brought together more than 60 experts from government agencies of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan involved in surface and groundwater management and environmental protection, representatives of international and public organisations, and other experts to identify key challenges to achieving Indicator 6.5.2 in the region and to develop specific actions to accelerate its achievement and strengthen cooperation in transboundary river and lake basins and aquifers in Central Asian countries.
The event was organized by the International Water Assessment Centre (IWAC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the Scientific Information Centre of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (SIC ICWC) of Central Asia with the financial support of the GIZ programme.
For reference: In September 2015, during the High-level Meeting on Sustainable Development held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, the 193 Member States of the United Nations officially adopted a new sustainable development agenda, entitled “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. This agenda includes the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely 17 goals and 169 targets. The goals include Goal 6: Ensure availability and sustainable management of water resources and sanitation for all, with its target 6.5 “By 2030 implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate”.
In 2023, 129 states of the world, including four Central Asian countries, submitted their third report on SDG indicator 6.5.2. Based on the provided reports, a review report “Progress on transboundary water cooperation: mid-term status of SDG indicator 6.5.2, with a special focus on climate change, 2024” has been prepared.
