On 15 September 2023, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Central Asia Kaha Imnadze participated in the Council of Heads of Founding States of IFAS in Dushanbe, Republic of Tajikistan.
At the meeting, hosted by the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, the Heads of the Founding States welcomed the activities under the Chairmanship of Tajikistan in IFAS (2020-2023) and exchanged views on topical issues pertaining to cooperation in the water, environment, energy and climate sectors as well as put forward initiatives for enhancing the work of the IFAS in the future. They also discussed progress made by the Working Group on the improvement of the organizational structure and legal basis of the IFAS.
SRSG Imnadze congratulated the Founding States with the 30th anniversary of the Fund and emphasized substantial efforts made by the States in improving the quality of life of communities living in region affected by the Aral Sea disaster. Commending the work of the Fund, SRSG reassured that the United Nations will continue assisting countries of the region in creating favorable conditions for mutually beneficial regional arrangements on water, energy, and environment within the UNRCCA Strategy for supporting cooperation between the countries of Central Asia in this area.
The Council concluded with the adoption of a joint Dushanbe Declaration, as well as the other documents pertaining to the work of the IFAS. Kazakhstan expressed its readiness to take over the Chairmanship in IFAS for the term 2024-2026. ///UNRCCA, 15 Sep 2023
SRSG Kaha Imnadze Participates At the Fifth Consultative Meeting of Heads of State of Central Asia DUSHANBE, Tajikistan
On 14 September 2023, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Central Asia Kaha Imnadze participated in the 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia, and Azerbaijan, held in Dushanbe, Republic of Tajikistan under the Chairmanship of Tajikistan.
At the meeting, hosted by the President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, the leaders of Central Asian states and Azerbaijan discussed current issues of strengthening interaction between Central Asian states in jointly responding to challenges and threats to regional security, as well as the prospects for expanding regional cooperation in the economic, trade, energy security, transport, healthcare, as well as in the field of youth policy. The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres made a video address to the Summit.
The 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State adopted a Joint Statement, outlining the main priorities of the regional cooperation, indicating challenges and suggesting ways of addressing them. Apart from that the Heads of State adopted agreements in the field of land transport and common directions of youth policy in Central Asia. ///UNRCCA, 15 Sep 2023