On October 25, 2022, “Green Central Asia” together with other GIZ regional programs as “Integrative and Climate-sensitive Land Use in Central Asia” and “Ecologically oriented regional development in the Aral Sea region” held the Regional Dialogue on Transboundary Cooperation on Management of Protected Areas in Central Asia.
Dialogue gathered in Tashkent the representatives of Ministries of Foreign Affairs, the state representatives of the respective line ministries/agencies in charge of protected areas and forestry of the five Central Asian countries.
The following international organizations as International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Michael Succow Foundation (MSF, Germany), Fauna & Flora International (FFI), Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, Nature Conservation Union of Germany (NABU) has actively participated the Dialogue.
The main purpose of the Dialogue was establishing a dialogue with the environmental authorities of neighboring countries to support them in improving coordination on the cross-border protected areas and strengthening effectiveness of joint actions to cope with the negative climate change impact on land and biodiversity.
The Dialogue raised many issues concerning the collaboration on the joint work opportunities to identify and study ecological migration corridors and the harmful effects of fences on migratory species; on the commitments and its implementation arising from the Conventions related to Biodiversity; on the possibility of creating a transboundary protected area between the countries of Central Asia, especially in places where national protected areas have already been established near state borders.
As a result of the Dialogue, a consensus was reached on further cooperation, combining efforts in the sustainable management of protected areas on state borders.
The participants proposed to establish a permanent working group consisting of representatives of relevant government line ministries/departments on protected areas, which would focus on cooperation in the transboundary protected areas management in Central Asia. The next meeting will be held in the first quarter of 2023 with the participation of international experts in the format of training on the transboundary protected areas management with different types of ecosystems (mountain, desert, water). It is supposed to create a management plan and develop a roadmap.
