First meeting of the Working Group in Tajikistan on the development of a National Action Plan and a Subregional Joint Action Program on Cryosphere

On 11 September 2025, the Agency for Hydrometeorology of the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan hosted the first meeting of the Working Group on the development of the National Glacier Conservation Fund, as well as the National Action Plan (NAP) and the Subregional Joint Action Programme (SJAP) on the Cryosphere.

The meeting was held within the framework of the GEF-UNDP-UNESCO regional project “Strengthening the resilience of Central Asian countries by enabling regional cooperation to assess glacio-nival systems to develop integrated methods for sustainable development and adaptation to climate change,” implemented by the UNESCO Regional Office in Almaty with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through UNDP.

The Working Group, established under the Agency for Hydrometeorology, brought together representatives of relevant ministries and government bodies.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss national priorities in the context of achieving Vision 2050 and to develop coordinated approaches to designing an action programme aimed at the conservation and sustainable management of Tajikistan’s cryosphere. Particular attention was given to building a common understanding of the tasks involved in monitoring and protecting glaciers and snow cover.

The Working Group reviewed the outcomes of the national workshop held on 24–25 April 2025 in Hissar, as well as target matrices prepared for the development of the National Cryosphere Action Plan.

During the discussion, members of the Working Group provided proposals and recommendations for improving the target matrices, which will be incorporated into the preparation of the National Action Plan.