BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 13. A roundtable on the topic "Land Degradation and Climate Change: Losses, Damages, and Opportunities for Strengthening Cooperation among Countries of Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Regions with Arid Climate" has taken place within the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), Trend reports via the Azerbaijani Ministry of Aggriculture.
According to the ministry, the event, held in the COP29 Blue Zone, gathered Azerbaijan's Minister of Agriculture Majnun Mammadov, Uzbekistan's Minister of Ecology, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change Aziz Abdukhakimov, leaders of relevant structures from both countries, representatives of international organizations, and experts.
Opening the event with introductory remarks, Abdukhakimov highlighted that, as with other parts of the world, the regions of Central Asia and the Caucasus are facing the challenges of rapid climate change and soil degradation.
He said that increased frequency and intensity of droughts,
desertification, and other extreme climate events are intensifying
threats to agriculture, water resources, and biodiversity.
In light of current challenges, minimizing the impacts of climate
change and enhancing cooperation among countries at regional and
global levels for sustainable development have become essential,
added the official.
Mammadov emphasized that the degradation of about 40 percent of the world’s land resources poses a threat to ecosystems, food security, and water resources, representing a global crisis.
According to him, in recent decades, unsustainable agricultural practices worldwide, deforestation, urban expansion, and the growing impacts of climate change have accelerated land degradation.
He stressed that achieving sustainable development amid modern challenges requires collaboration in digital transformation of agriculture, technology transfer in this field, and sharing of best practices.
The minister also said that to mitigate the negative impact of climate change on agriculture and make more effective use of available land and water resources, modern technologies are being increasingly utilized, and the development of climate-friendly agricultural systems is being supported.
Government assistance in the form of concessions and loans is provided to farmers engaged in activities such as implementing modern irrigation systems, preventing land degradation, and enhancing soil fertility, Mammadov explained.
At the event, World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Antonella Bassani, representatives from Kazakhstan, Belarus, and other countries discussed issues of identifying major risks and threats to agriculture and water resources, the current situation with land degradation and climate change, the rational use of land and water resources in the face of modern challenges, the adoption of resource-saving approaches, environmental improvements, preservation and development of sustainable agricultural traditions, and regional cooperation in developing adaptive strategies that account for local climate and economic conditions.
The event also featured a screening of footage on measures taken in the Aral Sea Basin region to address the environmental disaster and combat soil degradation.
To note, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) started in Baku on November 11. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference in the climate system.
The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) stands for “Conference of Parties” and is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change.
A total of 198 countries are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties decide otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.
The main expectation from COP29 is to agree on a fair and ambitious New Collective Quantitative Goal (NCQG) on climate finance. The COP29 chairmanship has launched 14 initiatives that include linkages between climate action and the Sustainable Development Goals, including green energy corridors, green energy storage, harmony for climate resilience, clean hydrogen, methane reduction in organic waste, action on green digital technologies, and other topics.
Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
