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United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development

Yashil Makon (Green Nation) - nationwide afforestation program

Government of Uzbekistan (
Government
)
#SDGAction49564
Description
Description

The "Yashil Makon”(“Green Nation") initiative put forward by the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev in November 2021 envisages the planting of 1 billion tree and shrub saplings across Uzbekistan over the next five years. The main goal is to increase green areas of the country from the current 8 to 30 percent. The initiative is aimed at improving the overall management system in the field of selecting, planting and caring for trees by: - conducting extensive research and analysis of the soil-climatic features of the regions, and mapping of the planting areas based on scientific approaches; - increasing in the number of nurseries, localization of imported trees adaptable to the climate of the country, taking into account soil fertility; - creation of "green public parks" in the cities, districts and provinces; - improving the tree watering system, ensuring its effective functioning; - strengthening responsibility for damage and destruction of trees, further increasing public control in this direction; - establishing the digital "Register of Trees"; A special state enterprise "Green Space" was established to ensure the practical implementation of the above-mentioned tasks. The Green Nation initiative is well aligned with the UN 2021 General Assembly Resolution, declaring the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies. Formerly the fourth largest lake in the world - the Aral Sea has lost 57 percent of its area, 80 percent of its volume, and 64 percent of its depth over the past 40 years. Since the late 1960s more than 75 million tons of dust and poisonous salts are reportedly blown up from the Aral Sea’s dried bottom each year. The Surkhandarya Region located in the extreme south-east of Uzbekistan is prone to dry hot winds. Strong dust storms at a speed of 20-25 m/s enter the region up to 19 times a year, causing great damage to the fertile soil layer, which reduces the productivity of agricultural products. Over the past 5 years, 1.7 million hectares of forest plantations have been planted on the drained seabed. The seedling of choice in this campaign is saxaul, a drought-resistant plant being deployed on a large scale to protect the soil and reduce excess evaporation, improving the local microclimate. It is planned to create an additional 500 thousand hectares of green areas on the dried bottom of the Aral Sea, bringing their total area by the end of 2026 to 2.5 million hectares, or 78 percent of the territory.

Expected Impact

The implementation of this ambitious and far-reaching initiative will help to accelerate various SDGs in the local, national and regional levels. In particular, the project will contribute to: - cleaner air in urban centers (SDG11 - 11.1, 11.5, 11.6, 11.8, 11.9); - creation of "green public parks" in the cities, districts and provinces (SDG 11.7); - saving lives and improving livelihoods (SDG 1, 2, 3) - fulfilling Uzbekistan’s commitments under the Paris Agreement to mitigate climate change and adapt to climate impacts (SDG13); - improving soil quality and may help avoid or even reverse desertification (SDG15 - 15.1, 15.2, 15.3, 15.4,15.5, 15.9); - addressing dust storms that a significant hazard (SDG3, 15); - creating environment-friendly and sustainable jobs, especially for rural women (SDG5 - 5.1, 5.5, 5.7; SDG8 - 8.1, 8.3, 8.5); - benefitting the health of the population and the economic prosperity of the regions (SDG3, 8); -ensuring the sustainability and climate resilience of the initiative through innovative long-term financing, coordination and capacity building (SDG15.10, 15,11).

Partners

The State Committee for Ecology and Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Finance, the State Forestry Committee, Uzhydromet, the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry for Support of Makhalla and Family, municipalities (province, district and city administrations), UNDP in Uzbekistan, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) as well as civil society organizations.

Additional information

https://www.uznature.uz/en; https://www.undp.org/uzbekistan; https://urmon.uz/en/home-english/

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Timeline
02 November 2021 (start date)
31 December 2026 (date of completion)
Entity
Government of Uzbekistan
SDGs
Region
  1. Asia and Pacific
Other beneficiaries

Urban and rural population, women and girls, youth

More information
Countries
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
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