Ashgabat, 28 February 2020: The joint project of the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan “Sustainable Cities in Turkmenistan: Integrated Green Urban Development in Ashgabat and Awaza”, funded by the Global Environment Facility, held the first working meeting to discuss the development of the draft National Strategy in the field of waste management. This event is a platform that UNDP has created to implement sustainable waste management practices in the urban environment and at the national level.

The event was held with participation of the government agencies and ministries, as well as representatives of the private sector of Turkmenistan, foreign companies, public associations, international organizations and media. The list of participants includes Ministry of Health and Medical Industry, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Construction and Architecture, local administration of Ashgabat and Turkmenbashy cities, State Committee for Statistics, State Concern “Turkmengaz”, State Concern “Turkmenneft”, departments of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection, Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan, OSCE, Turkmenistan Nature Conservation Society, Petronas Carigali (Turkmenistan) Sdn. Bhd ” and “ ENI Turkmenistan Ltd ”,“ Begler Yoly” Individual Enterprise,“Ynamly Kepil”, “Toprak” Business Company.

“The interest in the subject among participants is caused by the high importance and relevance of this workshop, as the subject of waste management is one of the most relevant both at the level of the world community and in Turkmenistan,” said Jemal Durdykova, UNDP / GEF project specialist. “We are glad to see the level of engagement among the private sector, mainly represented by recyclers pf plastic and wastepaper, as well as foreign companies that have expressed a desire for cooperation with the project.”

The project manager Ballyev Batyr presented the draft content of the strategy. During the discussion valuable opinions and recommendations were received regarding the content of the Strategy. Participants touched upon issues of existing legislation in the field of waste management, the work of the project and the national consultant on the analysis of the current situation and improving statistical reporting in the field of waste management were demonstrated.

Information was also provided on waste management and rational water use in the hotel industry, as well as on biotechnologies and their use in Turkmenistan, which will increase soil fertility in the urban park zones. The waste management campaign of the project and the future activities were widely discussed.

All information received will be applied in the development process and agreed in the prescribed manner, considering all opinions. Project experts emphasized the possibility of phased implementation of the Strategy.