NUR-SULTAN – The Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kazakhstan seek to strengthen cooperation as part of the new UNDP Country Program for 2021-2025, reported the ministry’s press service. This was announced at the Nov. 16 meeting of the Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan Magzum Mirzagaliyev with UNDP Resident Representative Yakup Beris in the Kazakh capital.
The UNDP Country Program will ensure the implementation of joint activities between Kazakhstan and the UN in the area of human development and equal participation, institution building, human rights, female empowerment, sustainable environmental policies and inclusive economic development.
Mirzagaliyev said that the Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources has developed a draft Environmental Code for Kazakhstan with a focus on introducing new technologies to solve environmental problems and increase accountability from polluters.
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev set a task to adopt a new Environmental Code by the end of 2020 to comply with the Paris Agreement, which Kazakhstan ratified in November 2016. It aims to create a more efficient and transparent system of state regulation and management in environmental protection. The document will go in line with the international environmental agreements that confirms Kazakhstan’s adherence to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) requirements and joining the top 30 developed nations of the world.
“The Environmental Code will allow for the transferring of 100 percent of environmental payments to protection measures. On the whole, we are taking steps to improve the country’s indicators in eco-development. And in this area, joint work with the UNDP is of great importance. I am sure the Country Program for 2021-2025, focused on Kazakhstan’s development priorities, will become an impetus for achieving effective results,” said Mirzagaliyev.
Beris said that the UNDP appreciates the help and willingness to cooperate from the ministry. “The government of Kazakhstan is giving priority to building the green economy, which we perceive as an accelerator for other areas of development in the economy. Within our new Country Program, we acknowledge that the green economy can stimulate economic diversification, attract new investments, create jobs and new businesses. Green growth is an opportunity for Kazakhstan to sustain its development and to grow in a sustainable manner,” he said.
The Kazakh government has also developed the draft Concept for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity until 2030. The strategic document provides the ground for the conservation and restoration of natural ecosystems, maintaining ecological balance and identifying patterns of natural development for natural habitats in accordance with obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
