It is necessary to act at all levels to achieve the goals of nature conservation. For instance, it is impossible to conduct only scientific and environmental protection activities without strengthening the material and technical base or improving the legislative framework.  

For the past 4 years, a joint project of UNDP and the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Ecology and Environment Protection, implemented with the financial support of the Global Environment Facility: "Sustainable natural resource use and forest management in key mountainous areas important for globally significant biodiversity" worked on a number of regulations aimed at improving existing legislation in the field of conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

We shared the results of this work at the round table with representatives of the State Forestry Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan, the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the key managers of protected natural areas and other state partners and stakeholders. 

The following inputs were made:

- Documentation for the creation of the first protection zone was developed in Uzbekistan in 2019, at the Gissar State Mountain Reserve;

- The procedure for the setup and organization of protected zones as well as the model regulation  were approved;

- The procedure for research work and monitoring of natural processes in reserves has been determined;

- A draft of a new version of the law on protected natural areas has been prepared, which covers key aspects of the creation and functioning of all protected natural areas of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

- Proposals for the zoning of the Ugam-Chatkal Natural National Park and the creation of a new protected natural area in Surkhandarya region were developed and submitted to the state bodies; 

- For the first time in the history of Uzbekistan, a cross-border Memorandum of Understanding on transboundary conservation of the snow leopard was prepared, which in 2021 was adopted and approved by the Governments of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. 

- The Government of Uzbekistan approved the Action Plan for the conservation of the snow leopard in the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Within the framework of the round table, our Project activities received high level of appreciation by the key state partners and stakeholders. During 2022, it is planned to continue close cooperation with state partners, the expected event is the completion of the process of approving the Draft of a new version of the law on protected natural territories with the main stakeholders and submitting it to the Oliy Majlis for approval.