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ASTANA, 13 March 2009

The Conference on Environmental Integration and Sustainable Development was co-organised by the European Commission (DG Environment) and the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan. Its main targets were:

• Highlighting the importance of cross-sectoral coordination and environmental integration, particularly in the sectors of energy, trade and infrastructure/construction;
• Presenting the EU experience in this regard;
• Taking a step forward in pursuing EU – Central Asia cooperation, while ensuring that environment is not neglected in the bigger picture;
• Paving ways for further cooperation among the five Central Asia countries in the field of environment.

The conference was attended by more than 60 participants from governments of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, several EU Member States, the European Commission, the World Bank, the EAP Task Force, and representatives of various international organisations, as well as NGOs from most Central Asian countries.

The opening of the Conference was made by Mr Nurgali Ashimov, Minister of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan and Mr Norbert Jousten, Head of Delegation of the European Commission to the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and the Republic of Tajikistan.

A panel, with participation of representatives of European Environmental Agency (EEA), Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC), Ministry of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan, OECD/EAP Task Force, Asia-Pacific Council on Environment and Development and private sector, constituted an integral part of the conference. It was moderated by Mr Jiři Hlavaček, representative of the EU Presidency.

The conference stressed among other that:

• Regional approach, without excluding regional and local initiatives, is the most appropriate to tackle environmental challenges in central Asia countries;
• Further action has to be based on existing processes, especially the EU-Central Asia Strategy;
• Efforts to promote environmental integration must be visible and the role of the EEA in this regard is of paramount importance;
• Environmental integration is less costly than compensation of environmental damages ex-post; hence, education and awareness rising is crucial (the role of CAREC in fulfilling this task was recognised);
• Investments and commitment of donors, including EBRD and, in the future, EIB, in Central Asian countries have to be increased;
• Legislative framework, that is national law and international conventions, must be strengthened; it is crucial for Central Asian countries to ratify international environmental conventions, including the Espoo Convention and the SEA Protocol to the Espoo Convention;
• Good practices in the field of environment from the other countries, especially the EU Member States, should be shared;
• Environmental integration depends on the good will of the countries' authorities; therefore, support from the top-level politicians is crucial; as well as civil society activities.

A Joint EU-Kazakhstan Communiqué was issued after the Conference.

Documents:

• Agenda of the conference
• Joint Communiqué

Presentations and background documents:

Key environmental challenges in Central Asia
Peter Thomson, Director, Sustainable Development Department of the World Bank's Europe and Central Asia region

Value of environmental integration: what is it worth?
Mr Andrew Farmer, Institute for European Environmental Policy

CAI as a multisectoral platform for environmental integration in Central Asia
Mr Talaybek Makeev, CAREC Executive Director

Main Threats and Limiting Factors of Central Asian Development
Bulat Yessekin, Member of the Sustainable Development Council of the Kazakhstan

Overview of Progress in Environmental Policy Integration in Central Asia
Angela Bularga, OECD/EAP Task Force

Leaflet on Central Asia

Commissioner Dimas welcome speech

Pictures

Conference hall

Mr Jiři Hlavaček, Director, Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic, representative of the Czech Republic Presidency of the European Union and Mr Nurgali Ashimov, Minister of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan

Panellists (from the left): Bulat Yessekin, Member of the Bureau of the UNECE Committee on Environmental Policy, Mr Talaybek Makeev, CAREC Executive Director, Mr Bolat Bekniyaz, Director of Ecological Policy and Sustainable Development Department, Ministry of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan Dr. David Stanners, Head of Group ''International Cooperation'', European Environment Agency, Ms Angela Bularga, Programme Manager, OECD EAP Task Force Secretariat, Mr Aleksiey Kuzmin, Director, Company 7+11, Russia

Chairmen table (second session) (from the left): Mr Jiři Hlavaček, Director, Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic, representative of the Czech Republic Presidency of the European Union, Mr Alexander Bragin, Director, Ministry of Environmental Protection of Kazakhstan, Mr Norbert Jousten, Ambassador, Head of Delegation of the European Commission to the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and the Republic of Tajikistan