Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Representatives of seven countries in Central Asia and the South Caucasus have signed the regional Silk Road Declaration on population mobility in the context of climate change. The document was signed at Uzbekistan’s initiative on the sidelines of the 31st UN Climate Change Conference (COP31), the National Committee of Uzbekistan for Ecology and Climate Change reported.
The signing ceremony took place at the Uzbekistan Pavilion during a high-level event dedicated to population mobility amid climate change. Participants included representatives of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as international organisations and development partners.
Uzbekistan was represented at the event by Aziz Abdukhakimov, Presidential Adviser on Ecology and Chairman of the National Committee for Ecology and Climate Change.
The declaration aims to strengthen regional dialogue and coordination on climate-induced migration and population displacement. It also envisages developing joint approaches to protecting vulnerable communities and responding to the effects of climate change, taking each country’s national priorities into account.
Participants discussed how rising temperatures, melting glaciers, water scarcity, desertification, land degradation and extreme weather events affect people's livelihoods and migration patterns.
Abdukhakimov noted that climate change affects not only the environment but also people's well-being, economic opportunities and mobility. He cited the consequences of the Aral Sea environmental disaster for the health, incomes and living conditions of the region’s population.
He said strengthening climate resilience requires investment in sustainable livelihoods, improved water resource management, ecosystem restoration and the development of social protection systems.
The meeting also addressed Uzbekistan’s presidential initiative to develop a Global Framework of Cooperation on Climate Mobility, presented at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly.
The regional declaration, participants noted, could help advance this initiative.
