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From December 4 to 6, meetings were held in Astana as part of a pre-assessment visit by the World Bank for the preparation of the project "Caspian Sea Ecosystem Restoration: Building Capacity in Pollution Management and Biodiversity Conservation" ("Blueing the Caspian Sea"), which is funded by grants from the Global Environment Facility.

The project is planned to be implemented in three Caspian littoral countries (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan) with a total budget of 12 million USD. It consists of three main components: protecting the Caspian Sea from pollution, conserving biodiversity, and sustainable coastal zone management.

The consultations involved representatives of government agencies and organizations from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, as well as representatives from the World Bank, the Temporary Secretariat of the Convention for the Protection of the Caspian Sea (Tehran Convention) – UNEP, the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and others.

The participants discussed priority directions for the project’s implementation, regional integration activities, and national initiatives for pollution management and biodiversity conservation. They also addressed national and regional mechanisms for project implementation. The importance of improving ecological and hydrological monitoring systems in the Caspian Sea, developing scientific research cooperation among Caspian countries, and joint efforts for the conservation of the Caspian seal population were highlighted.

A seminar on aquaculture in the Caspian and Aral Seas was also held, with a discussion on the sustainable development of aquaculture and its production and consumption chain. Delegations presented presentations on the topic "State and Challenges for Aquaculture" and conducted group work on creating a roadmap for studying aquaculture in the Caspian and Aral Sea basin countries.

As a result of the event, it was agreed to hold online meetings in January 2025 to finalize the agreement on the project components with each country individually.

ORIENT

Photo: gov.kz