Section 6
United Nations and its specialized agencies

UN Multi-Partner Human Security Trust Fund for the Aral Sea Region

On 27 November, the UN Headquarters in New York hosted a High-Level Event on the launch of the UN Multi-Partner Human Security Trust Fund for the Aral Sea Region in Uzbekistan (MPHSTF).

The UN General Assembly adopted on 18 May the resolution declaring the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies. For implementation of the resolution, a Roadmap and a list of priority innovation projects were approved by the President’s Decree (PP-5202 of July 29, 2021).

The Advisory Committee on Sustainable Development of the Aral Sea Region held its 2nd and 3rd meetings on 30 March and 8 July, respectively. To date, the Advisory Committee has made considerable progress. The Government of Uzbekistan presented the draft of the Integrated Roadmap for the achievement of environmental equilibrium and ensuring of socio-economic development in this region. The socio-economic trends for the last decades and 2030 forecast scenarios for Karakalpakstan have been presented by UNDP.

Resources of MPHSTF. By November 2021, US $15.5 million has been mobilized in total. The Government of Uzbekistan provided its third tranche in the amount of US $1.5 million in February, and the Alwaleed Philanthropies, a philanthropic organization in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, made a contribution of US $200,000 to the Fund in May.

Projects. In 2021, the below projects were implemented:

• Towards universal health coverage and security in Karakalpakstan (2021-2023): A fourth expert mission was conducted on December 13-17, 2021 to Nukus, Kungrad and Muynaq. The outputs were: 1) a functional plan developed for the Muynaq-Kungrad medical network, including links to PHC; 2) preliminary ToRs drafted for a building plan for the Muynaq and Kungrad hospitals, including blue, green and resilient infrastructure.

• Unleashing young people’s and vulnerable citizens’ creativity and innovation by strengthening their adaptive capacity to address the economic and food insecurities in the exposed communities of the Aral Sea region (2021-2023), the objective of which is to increase the efficiency and innovations in agriculture, promoting smart and digitalized communities, with favorable infrastructure and facilitating active labor market initiatives. Results achieved in 2021: (1) FAO conducted six trainings (two on horticulture, two on conservative agriculture, two on fishery) with a total of 155 beneficiaries, most of them women and youth; (2) access to clean drinking water has been provided to Kungrad central Republican clinic, polyclinic, and two schools with a total number of beneficiaries of 7208 people.

• Investing in a resilient future of Karakalpakstan by improving health, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene and wellbeing of adolescents and by harnessing the talents of youth during and after COVID-19 (2021-2022) aimed to address the immediate needs of vulnerable populations, in terms of safe and clean schools and health care facilities, and other health and nutrition needs and to strengthen human capital and the resilience of youth in three districts (Muynak, Kungrad, and Bozatau). Results achieved in 2021: process of developing a knowledge hub (https://bilim.tma.uz/), which will serve as a one-stop digital platform for communication, information sharing, and a repository of all training materials and resources on health topics for healthcare workers in the country to support telemedicine and distance learning systems; equipped 88 young people, especially the most vulnerable and marginalized with social and living skills, and supported 15 youth-led projects.

• Improving the quality of perinatal care service to most vulnerable mothers and newborns (2019-2021), objective of which is to ensure the population’s access to perinatal services through infrastructure improvement and provision of essential equipment to medical facilities and increase the quality of maternal and newborn health care services. Results achieved in 2021: 730 healthcare providers were trained on evidence-based maternal and newborn survival practices; 70% of Karakalpakstan's population is served with modernized target inter-district perinatal centers in Kungrad and Beruniy districts and Nukus city.

• Addressing the urgent human insecurities in the Aral Sea region through promoting sustainable rural development (2019-2021), aimed to mitigate the negative environmental, social and economic consequences for region’s more vulnerable communities. Results achieved in 2021: 5 infrastructure projects on water purification and supply of drinking water implemented in Takhtakupir district; developed training module and brochures on Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) for the population and a total of 150 people trained in WASH rules; two research expeditions were conducted on the dried seabed of the Aral Sea, covering 1.2 million ha of land. The book “Monitoring of the Dried Seabed of the Aral Sea” was published in Russian and English.

Source: www.aral.mptf.uz, Newsletter, issue 01

6.5. UN Water

In 2013, the UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination established the inter-agency coordination mechanism UN-Water. It coordinates the efforts of UN entities and international organizations working on water and sanitation issues. Over 30 UN organizations carry out water and sanitation programs.

Activities in 2021

The 34th UN-Water Meeting was convened as a virtual event on 15-17 March 2021. The participants discussed advancing SDG 6 Global Acceleration Framework, the UN Conference on Midterm Review of the Water Action Decade 2018-2028, and planning for World Water Day 2021 and the UN World Water Development Report 2021.

The UN World Water Development Report 2021 “Valuing Water” was launched. The report shows that the inability to recognize the value of water is the main cause of water waste and misuse. It seems necessary to examine water’s various dimensions in order to understand the various aspects of its “value”. This is especially true in times of growing scarcity and against the backdrop of population growth and climate change.

The SDG 6 Summary Progress Update 2021 report provides the latest available country, region and world data on all of the SDG 6 global indicators. It outlines how far we have come in implementing the different aspects of SDG 6 in the different parts of the world, and where we are lagging behind.

The UN-Water issued two analytical briefs: (1) Water-use efficiency; (2) The United Nations global water conventions: Fostering sustainable development and peace.

Source: www.unwater.org

6.6. UN Economic Commission for Europe

UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is one of five regional commissions of the United Nations set up in 1947. Its main scope of work includes environment, transport, statistics, sustainable energy, trade, wood products and forests, housing and land use, population and economic cooperation and integration.

UNECE and Water Convention

UNECE serves as the Secretariat for the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention). In 2021, during the 9th session of the Meeting of Parties to the Water Convention, the Program of Work of the Water Convention for the period 2022-2024 has been adopted. It has been developed in a consultative manner and is organized across seven program areas: awareness and inclusion, monitoring and evaluation, integrated and intersectoral approach, climate change adaptation, financing, reporting, partnerships and knowledge. In 2021 Kazakhstan chaired the Water Convention.

Activities in 2021

Under the Water Convention and the Protocol on Water and Health, UNECE organized the following events: 31st and 32nd meetings of the Bureau to the Water Convention (January 21-22, April 29-30); 5th meeting of the Global network of basins working on climate change adaptation (February 26); 25th and 26th meeting of the Bureau of the Protocol on Water and Health (March 4-5, November 18-19); 6th meeting of the Expert Group on Equitable Access to Water and Sanitation (March 24-25); Global workshop on building climate resilience by improving water management and sanitation at national and transboundary levels (March 29-31); 12th meeting of the Task Force on Water and Climate (March 31); 12th meeting of the Working Group on Water and Health (April 14-15); 3rd joint meeting of the Working Group on IWRM and Working Group on Monitoring and Assessment (April 26-28); Launch of the second Progress Report on Transboundary Water Cooperation: Global status of SDG indicator 6.5.2 and acceleration needs (September 14); 9th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Water Convention (September 29-October 1).

Details: unece.org/info/events/unece-meetings-and-events/environmental-policy/water-convention

UNECE Activities in Central Asia

Transboundary cooperation. In 2021 UNECE continued to support the Secretariat of the Chu-Talas Commission and was in close contact with UNDP regarding the process of harmonization and approval of the SAP. In particular, UNECE provided guidance and advice through several transboundary and national discussions and capacity building events under the Convention. Consequently, the SAP was endorsed by the Chu-Talas Commission on 15 April 2021.

Project results are available on: unece.org/environment-policy/water/areas-work-convention/transboundary-cooperation-chu-and-talas-river-basin and in the brochure

National Policy Dialogues. The work to support NPDs as part of the EU Water Initiative is ongoing in close cooperation with OECD within a new regional project under WECOOP program financed by EU.

The following events were organized: (1) a roundtable expert meeting was held in hybrid format in Tajikistan on February 2. A new methodology for calculating water balance of water bodies was presented. There are plans for wide application of the methodology in a variety of river basins. This work will have a profound impact on advancing scientifically justified approaches for water management in Tajikistan. The methodology was transferred to the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources of the Republic of Tajikistan for adoption; (2) an expert workshop to discuss approaches for water management took place in hybrid form in the Kyrgyz Republic on June 11. The participants discussed damage compensation approaches for water resources and water facilities, indicators of water security, especially in the transboundary context, Kyrgyzstan’s cooperation with its neighboring countries on the protection and use of transboundary water resources and specifically reporting on the SDG 6.5.2 on transboundary water cooperation, and priorities for the national water sector development; (3) the meeting of the Working Group in preparation to the seventh meeting of the Inter-agency Coordination Council of the National Water Policy Dialogue (NPD) took place in hybrid format. The Working Group discussed Kazakhstan’s water policy agenda, including the status of hydro-technical infrastructure, the use of water-saving technologies on irrigated areas, as well as cooperation with its neighboring countries on the protection and use of water resources of transboundary rivers.

Cooperation on dam safety. UNECE continued supporting the Central Asian region in building human and institutional capacity on the safe management of dams under the project Capacity Building for Cooperation on Dam Safety in Central Asia . Among other items, the virtual regional meeting (June 23) discussed a draft agreement on regional cooperation on dam safety. Meeting participants reiterated the importance of such a document, which if endorsed, would provide a legal and institutional platform for the countries to facilitate their efforts to collectively manage transboundary dams in the region, including response measures.

SPECA Program. The 24th Session of the Working Group on Water, Energy and Environment of the United Nations Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA WG on WEE) was held online on 10-11 November. The main objective of this Session was to discuss opportunities for intersectoral and regional cooperation on water, energy and environmental challenges in the context of climate change. Meeting participants noted that climate change poses increasingly severe risks for ecosystems, human health and the economy of the SPECA sub-region. Cross-sectoral and regional cooperation on the energy, water, and natural resources has potential to provide economic gains, improve the environment and increase the wellbeing of citizens. Cooperation can also support the region’s adaptation to climate change, including response to natural disasters. See also Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

Project “Regional mechanisms for the low-carbon, climate-resilient transformation of the energy-water-land Nexus in Central Asia”, funded by Germany’s International Climate Initiative (IKI) from the German Federal Ministry for Environment . In partnership with OECD, SIC ICWC, EBRD and FAO, UNECE will implement a project funded by IKI to improve the management of water, energy, land, and environmental resources in Central Asia in the face of climate change, through analytical work and support to policy development and cooperation. The project has three main objectives: to mainstream the nexus principles into development planning process, to finance pilot projects to demonstrate benefits of investments in the “nexus”, and to organize regional policy dialogues and facilitate capacity development. In particular, the UNECE will provide substantive input on nexus and transboundary cooperation, and brings political convening power to the consortium. The project will deliver a regional strategy and related national policy packages, the regional and country level dialogues, supported respectively by meetings of SPECA and National Policy Dialogues (NPDs) on Integrated Water resources Management.

Source: UNECE

International Water Assessment Center

The International Water Assessment Center (IWAC) is the center for international cooperation on integrated water resource management, which has been established as a subsidiary body of the Water Convention in Astana in 2017. The main purpose of IWAC is to support the implementation of the Water Convention and its relevant work programs.

Activities in 2021

The IWAC team presented the electronic brochure on "Water resources allocation in a transboundary context to strengthen water cooperation between the countries of Eurasia". The publication provides an overview of the existing regional cooperation in the basins of transboundary rivers of the Eurasian countries, a brief description of the legal and institutional framework for such cooperation and the distribution of water resources in transboundary basins. It also examines the existing problems of interaction in the allocation of water resources and offers recommendations for their resolution.

The Working Group on Kazakhstan’s chairmanship in the Bureau of the Water Convention held its meetings in Nur-Sultan: (1) 3rd meeting, which approved the draft IWAC Program of work for 2022-2024, took note of the information on the 32nd meeting of the Bureau of the Water Convention, and the IWAC was invited to create a roadmap for the activities of the National Water Policy Dialogue for 2022-2024; (2) 4th meeting, which decided on the members of a delegation of Kazakhstan to participate in the Ninth Session of the Parties to the Water Convention, as well as on the candidacy from the Republic of Kazakhstan, to the Bureau of the Water Convention; (3) 5th meeting, which decided to prepare proposals for the implementation of decisions made at the Ninth Session of the Meeting of the Parties, as well as prepare cost estimations for representatives of Kazakhstan in the activities planned under the Water Convention in 2022.

During the 9th Session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Water Convention Kazakhstan declared on completion of its chairmanship in the Bureau of the Convention. The representative of Estonia was elected as the Chair of the Bureau of the Convention, while the representative of Kazakhstan was elected as the Deputy Chair of the Bureau (September 29 – October 1, Geneva).

On June 17, the Director of IWAC Serik Akhmetov had a meeting with representatives of the USAID Regional Office. During the meeting USAID representatives were introduced with the activities of the IWAC and possible areas of cooperation within the framework of the USAID Water and Environment Project were identified.

IWAC in cooperation with the WECOOP Project organized an online training workshop to facilitate the exchange of experience between the Slovak Republic and the CA countries in the field of hydrometeorological services (November 10-11).

Source: IWAC

6.7. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

Established in 1947, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is one of five regional missions of the UN. ESCAP works to overcome some of the region's greatest challenges by providing results oriented projects, technical assistance and capacity building to member States in the following areas: macroeconomic policy and development; trade and investment; transport; social development; environment and sustainable development; information and communications technology and disaster risk reduction; statistics and sub-regional activities for development.

SPECA Program

ESCAP in cooperation with UNECE manages SPECA. In 2021, under SPECA, the following online events were held in Tashkent: (1) 24th session of the Working Group (WG) on Water, Energy and Environment (November 10-11); (2) SPECA Economic Forum "Sustainable transport and trade for а green and inclusive есоnomy after the pandemic" (November 17-18); (3) 16th session of the SPECA Governing Council which adopted the Tashkent Statement, listened to progress reports of the SPECA Thematic Working Groups, presented a draft SPECA Work Plan for 2022-2023 and adopted it (November 19). The Governing Council has decided that SPECA Chair country for 2022, the exact dates and venue of the 2022 SPECA Economic Forum and the 17th session of the SPECA Governing Council would be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.

Two e-learning courses have been developed: Integrated Action on Biodiversity/Ecosystems, Health and Climate; and, Water, the Ocean and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The CA countries have been assisted in the implementation of the Paris Agreement, in particular: (1) the ToR on application of carbon market tools in CA was developed; (2) the Regional dialogue on carbon pricing was organized for the CA countries on 25-26 February; (3) a regional training workshop was held for CA specialists, focused on inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and requirements for transparency reporting as part of the Paris Agreement (May 1-20); (4) the Practical Handbook on Methodologies for GHG Emissions Inventories and Paris Agreement Reporting was drafted.

Two policy briefs have been published: SDG 6 & COVID-19: Accelerating Progress Towards SDG 6 in the Asia-Pacific Region in the Context of COVID-19 Recovery; and, Mending the Broken Relationship with Nature: Tackling the Biodiversity, Ecosystems, Health and Climate Change Nexus Post-COVID-19.

Sources: www.unescap.org, www.unece.org

6.8. United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia

The United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) was established on the initiative of the five Governments of Central Asia in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in 2007 to support national authorities in identifying and addressing existing and potential threats to regional peace and security. In implementing its initiatives, UNRCCA interacts with regional and international organizations. The Centre began operations in 2008 and is led by a Special Representative of the Secretary General.

Key priorities for 2021-2025

The current UNRCCA Programme of Action for 2021-2025 focuses on five key priority areas, which correspond to the Centre’s mandate: (1) promoting preventive diplomacy among the Governments of Central Asia; (2) monitoring and early warning in support of conflict prevention; (3) building partnerships for prevention, including with regional and sub-regional organizations; (4) strengthening the United Nations preventive diplomacy in Central Asia; (5) encouraging cooperation and interaction between Central Asia and Afghanistan in close cooperation with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

UNRCCA Activities in 2021

Work was continued on the three-year Project in support of regional transboundary water cooperation in Central Asia over 2019-2021; work contacts and coordination were maintained with EC IFAS, SIC ICWC, SIWI, SDC, CAREC, VNIIGiM named by A. Kostyakov, as well as with UN agencies, such as UNESCO, UNECE, UNDP, etc. UNRCCA representatives, first of all, the Special Representative of the Secretary General, Head of UNRCCA took part in regional events organized both by CA governments and partner organizations.

UNRCCA organized: (1) an online capacity-building workshop dedicated to water and health nexus as well as gender equality for effective management of water resources in the region: “Challenges and Opportunities in Central Asia and Afghanistan in the post-COVID World”, together with the Government of Canada. At the outcome of the event, some practical recommendations were formulated with the view to follow-up and spur this important work in the region aimed at empowerment of women in all spheres of societal life (March 15-16); (2) online capacity building seminar and the meeting of experts from Central Asia and Afghanistan, dedicated to cooperation in the field of water and energy in the Central Asian region. Participants were able to familiarize themselves with the application of environmental and social frameworks to enable development projects on international watercourses. The seminar was also focused on addressing the promotion of mutually beneficial cooperation on transboundary water resources management in Central Asia through applying legal instruments governing common and sustainable exploitation of transboundary watercourses. The experts continued their work on inventory of regional agreements and other normative acts related to water and energy cooperation in the Aral Sea Basin. In addition, the participants exchanged and updated each other on the state-of-play in bilateral and multilateral cooperation between the neighboring countries in the water-energy and environmental fields (June 15-16); (3) online meeting of national experts from the Central Asian states, to discuss issues pertaining to support of the regional cooperation in the field of water, energy, and climate. The participants expressed their initial views on the draft of the renewed UNRCCA project to support regional cooperation in Central Asia on water, energy and climate for 2022-2025. The experts provided their feedback as regards future work aimed at enhancing cooperation on the UNRCCA platform (October 27); (4) two meetings of national experts. Delegations had an opportunity to discuss and present their views and suggestions on the draft text of the renewed UNRCCA strategy in support of water, energy and environmental cooperation among the states of Central Asia for 2022-2025. Finally, the renewed strategy was approved and adopted by national experts (November 26, December 21-22).

In cooperation with SIC ICWC, four Aral Sea Basin transboundary water early warning bulletins were issued and the fourth issue of 2020 Water Yearbook: Central Asia and Around the Globe was published. The Center also supports activities of the regional knowledge management e-platform “Water Unites”.

Source: UNRCCA