President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov, addressing the Summit of World Leaders on Climate Action in Baku, stressed the importance of coordinated actions to combat climate change in order to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.
He called on developed countries to increase financial assistance to developing countries in the framework of climate finance. “We support the early adoption of a new collective quantitative goal for financing measures to combat climate change and call on developed countries to increase the amount of assistance to developing countries within the framework of climate finance to two trillion US dollars with easier access to this financing,” Japarov said.
He noted that Kyrgyzstan has initiated a mechanism to exchange foreign debt for climate and sustainable development projects. Japarov proposed to restructure the country’s external public debt, replacing it with investments in “green” projects. To implement this initiative, a Climate Trust Fund was established in Kyrgyzstan, which will finance projects in the field of ecology and sustainable mountain development.
The Head of State expressed gratitude to Türkiye and Germany for the decision to transfer part of Kyrgyzstan’s debt to “green” projects.
President Japarov stressed that Kyrgyzstan plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 16% by 2030, and with international support – by 44%. Carbon neutrality is planned to be achieved through the development of renewable energy sources, energy efficiency improvements, reduction of coal consumption through gasification and improvement of heat supply systems.
As an example of successful implementation of projects in the field of renewable energy, President Japarov cited the construction of Kambaratinskaya HPP-1, one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in the region. He also noted that 10 small hydroelectric power plants were commissioned in Kyrgyzstan in 2023, and 15 more are planned to be built this year.
In the context of climate change, Kyrgyzstan pays special attention to the issues of rational use of water resources. President Japarov called on international partners to support the initiative to establish a Regional center in Bishkek for the introduction of energy-efficient and resource-saving technologies.
Japarov recalled that the melting of glaciers in Kyrgyzstan threatens the water security of the entire region. “Over the past 70 years, the area of glaciers in Kyrgyzstan has decreased by 16%, in some regions of the country almost all glaciers have disappeared, by 2100 we may lose more than half of them altogether,” he stressed.
The Head of Kyrgyzstan called for international cooperation in the field of sustainable development of mountain regions, stressing that the well-being of not only mountain peoples, but also billions of people living in the lower reaches depends on the state of mountain ecosystems.
In conclusion, President Japarov invited the summit participants to the Second Bishkek+25 Global Mountain Summit, which will be held in Kyrgyzstan in 2027. ///nCa, 13 November 2024