At the Climate Forum in Samarkand on 4−5 April, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change, in collaboration with the World Bank, announced the launch of the Restoration of Sustainable Landscapes in Uzbekistan Project. The initiative is funded with $153 million under a regional program aimed at restoring forests and degraded lands in Central Asia.

The World Bank will provide $153 million in financing — comprising a concessional loan and grants — to support project activities that are part of a broader regional program aimed at rehabilitating degraded forests and lands across five Central Asian countries.

The project will cover six regions: Jizzakh, Kashkadarya, Namangan, Samarkand, Surkhandarya and Syrdarya. It aims to restore degraded land, enhance landscape resilience, promote ecotourism, and support small businesses.

The Forestry Agency under the Ministry of Ecology is responsible for implementation, including:

• Restoring degraded lands in six regions using trees (agroforestry, forest plantations, fruit orchards and silvopastoral systems). This initiative will also create short-term jobs for local communities involved in reforestation and greening efforts;
• Providing financial and educational support to farmers for developing small and medium-sized enterprises based on more efficient use of natural resources;
• Improving the management of protected natural areas and forest reserves while developing sustainable ecotourism. The project will fund necessary infrastructure, including visitor centers, administrative facilities, campsites, picnic areas, tourist trails and other recreational spaces;
• Establishing Uzbekistan’s first unified database of forest plantations and creating an information and communication platform for the Forestry Agency.

According to minister of ecology Aziz Abduhakimov, tree planting on degraded lands will strengthen landscape resilience, improve living conditions, and create jobs.

“The project we launch today jointly with the World Bank will help the government achieve the goals under the Concept for Developing Uzbekistan’s Forest System until 2030. These include expanding the area of forests across the country to 6.1 million hectares by the end of this decade,” he noted.

World Bank regional director for Central Asia Tatiana Proskuryakova emphasized that the new project will enable Uzbekistan to participate in the RESILAND CA+ program, which aims to enhance climate resilience in urban and rural areas.

According to the Ministry of Ecology, Uzbekistan’s forested land managed by the Forestry Agency covers 4.4 million hectares, accounting for 10.6% of the country’s total area.

As part of a presidential decree issued on 27 March 2024, titled “On measures for implementing the 'Restoration of Sustainable Forest Landscapes in Uzbekistan' Project with the Participation of the International Development Association”, the following initiatives are planned:

• supporting natural forest regeneration on 176,000 hectares;
• restoring pastures on 38,500 hectares;
• introducing water-saving technologies and combating soil erosion in mountain forests across 15,000 hectares;
• implementing agroforestry reclamation activities on 14,200 hectares;
• establishing industrial forest plantations on 5,000 hectares and medicinal plant plantations on another 5,000 hectares.

During the project presentation, a memorandum of cooperation was signed between the Forestry Agency and Green University to conduct scientific research on forestry-related topics.