UNGA Approves Resolution Proposed by Uzbekistani President on Aral Sea

On Tuesday, the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a special resolution on declaring the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies which was proposed by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The resolution was co-authored by about 60 states from various regions of the world, including Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Turkey, Japan, Pakistan, Iran, India, Egypt, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Jordan, Oman, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Hungary, Romania, Algeria, Paraguay and others.

For the first time, at a meeting of the heads of the founding states of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea, held in August 2018 in Turkmenistan, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev suggested the initiative to declare the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies.

At the 75th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2020, the President of Uzbekistan called on the member states to develop and adopt a special resolution on this issue.

In his statement, the President emphasized the focus of the initiative on creating conditions for attracting investment in the development and implementation of high-tech innovations, energy and water-saving green technologies, the integrated application of the principles of a green economy, preventing further land degradation, desertification and environmental migration, the development of ecotourism and implementation of other measures.

On October 25, 2019, an international high-level conference "Aral Sea Region - a zone of ecological innovations and technologies" was organized in Nukus, during which a draft resolution was presented for the first time. In his video message, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the disappearance of the Aral Sea one of the greatest environmental disasters of our time.

In a short period of time and, despite significant restrictions on the work of the UN General Assembly due to the COVD-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and diplomatic missions of Uzbekistan held numerous negotiations with the UN member states to bring the essence and content of the resolution to the fore, its relevance was regularly voiced at various high-level forums, plenary and special meetings of the main UN bodies.

A series of informal consultations were organized with the participation of a wide UN membership to agree on the text of the resolution. Delegations of member countries from the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, Africa, Latin and North America, which actively participated in the discussions on the draft document, highly appreciated the initiative of the President of Uzbekistan, and also emphasized its extreme importance both for the countries of Central Asia and the rest of the world.

In the resolution, the General Assembly:

- Supports the initiative to transform the Aral Sea region from a zone of ecological crisis into a zone of ecological innovations and technologies;

- Expresses its support for the ongoing regional efforts and initiatives to strengthen the environmental, social, economic and demographic situation of the Aral Sea region;

- Encourages research and scientific advisory activities to further recover and improve the environment, preserve natural resources and enhance the quality of life of the population of the Aral Sea region;

- Emphasizes the importance of strengthening regional cooperation in the implementation of joint actions to overcome the consequences of the Aral Sea crisis and stabilize the ecological situation in the Aral Sea region, prevent further desertification and mitigate the negative environmental and socioeconomic consequences by stabilizing the methods of forest amelioration of sand formations on the drained bottom of the Aral Sea, which is subject to ash, salt and dust transfer, and promoting socioeconomic development and adaptation to climate change, the development of ecotourism and the implementation of other measures;

- Declares the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies, and in this context calls upon Member States, the funds, programmes and agencies of the United Nations system, international financial institutions and other relevant stakeholders to develop and implement in the Aral Sea region environmentally sound technologies, sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, and energy- and water-saving technologies, in line with goal 17.7 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The document reflects the high assessment and support of the UN for the creation, at the initiative of the leadership of Uzbekistan, of the International Innovation Center of the Aral Sea region and the establishment under the auspices of the United Nations of the Multi-Partner Trust Fund for Human Security for the Aral Sea Region, which is designed to overcome the negative circumstances of the environmental disaster in the Aral Sea region and implement socially-economic projects.

It should be noted that the Aral Sea region became the first region to which the General Assembly granted such a significant status - the Zone of Ecological Innovations and Technology. And it will not be an exaggeration to say that the initiative of the President of Uzbekistan to create such a zone will find its application in various regions of the world as part of a common effort to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals for the period up to 2030.