Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 3 December 2020, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), together with the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbekistan and the State Committee on Forestry of the Republic of Uzbekistan, held a scientific and practical conference “Topical issues of protection, cultivation, processing and increasing the export potential of medicinal plants in Uzbekistan” in Tashkent. 

The event was organized within the framework of the FAO project funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) "Sustainable Forest Management in Mountainous and Valley Areas of Uzbekistan".

The conference is dedicated to the integration of education, science and industry in order to develop the industry. FAO experts, representatives of ministries and departments, specialists from the State Forestry Committee and the State Committee on Ecology, professors and academicians of the Institute of Chemistry and Plant Substances of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan and representatives of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry made reports. More than 110 scientific articles were presented in total. It was noted that today the demand for natural medicines in the world has increased by 6-7 percent. 

World experience shows that the cultivation and processing of wild-growing medicinal plants and spices, their cultivation by the cultivated plantation method is very profitable and promising.

The presidential decree "On measures for the protection, cultivation, processing of wild medicinal plants and the rational use of available resources" expanded the possibilities for increasing the volume of their cultivation and more fruitful use. In 2020-2023, it is planned to bring the territory of plantations of medicinal plants to 103.7 thousand hectares.

“Key to the conservation of wild medicinal plants is the implementation of the FAO / GEF project“ Sustainable Forest Management in Mountainous and Valley Areas of Uzbekistan ”, which aims to increase the productivity, sustainability and biodiversity of forests. FAO works closely with Goskomles to manage forestry, timber and non-timber resources wisely, competently and sustainably, using forest-friendly approaches and technologies at all levels,” stressed Olimjon Kakhkharov, FAO’s technical coordinator.

This was followed by sectional sessions, where they discussed the role of wild medicinal plants in the development of medicine, the chemistry of plant substances and technology for the manufacture of medicines, the pharmaceutical properties of plants growing in the territory of Uzbekistan, and much more.

The conference became a good platform for discussing topical issues of integrating science and production, increasing the volume of cultivation and processing of medicinal plants, supplying the pharmaceutical industry with raw materials at the level of international standards, increasing exports of medicinal plants and other important aspects of the industry’s development. The conference organizers encouraged the authors who highlighted the most important issues in their reports and gave effective recommendations for the development of the industry.