The update of Turkmenistan's climate commitments continues

A meeting was held in Ashgabat dedicated to updating the main document in the field of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, essentially a list of practical actions voluntarily adopted by Turkmenistan as part of its implementation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The meeting brought together representatives of ministries and agencies, as well as Turkmenistan’s contact points for three UN global conventions. These are the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, Batyr Ballyev), the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD, Muhammet Durikov), and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD, Jumamyrat Saparmyradov). The synergy and interconnectedness of these conventions are evident: the climate changes, then nature follows, and afterward, the set of biodiversity.

Specialists from international organizations, environmental project experts from the ministries of environment protection of Turkmenistan, energy, and agriculture were present. These projects are carried out with the support of UN programs – UNDP, UNICEF, UNIDO – as well as the German Society for International Cooperation and other partners.

The opening of the meeting was preceded by an announcement about the upcoming milestone 80th session of the UN General Assembly, during which various aspects of Turkmenistan’s socio-economic development would be highlighted. This section will also include climate change issues. In this context, the meeting moderators emphasized that Turkmenistan responsibly fulfills its international obligations arising from agreements, conventions, and treaties of which it is a party, one of such documents being the NDC (Nationally Determined Contributions).

The developers of the document in the new edition presented areas of work and distinct features of the new list of voluntary mitigation and adaptation measures, which should be not only "ambitious" but also feasible, and should not become a lever to restrain economic growth and GDP. An update was given on the Fourth National Communication of Turkmenistan on climate change, now in its final stage of preparation, covering a multi-year period.

It should be explained that in the future, countries will only prepare biennial reports, which is related to the need for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to have modern operational data at the global level to create a realistic picture of climate transformation scenarios.

Reports on the social aspects of the population's life related to climate change were interesting, as were the messages from sectoral agencies about ongoing mitigation and adaptation activities, plans to strengthen such work, and proposals for improving the structure and content of the NDC.