As part of the project Conservation and Sustainable Management of Land Resources and High Nature Value Ecosystems in the Aral Sea basin for Multiple Benefits”, implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan and with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), a roundtable was held in Ashgabat dedicated to the integration of Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) principles into national land use policy and planning. The event was devoted to the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought and was organized in cooperation with the Scientific Information Center of the Interstate Commission on Sustainable Development — a body of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS).

The aim of the event was to support the inclusion of LDN principles in the updated National Action Programme to Combat Desertification (NAPCD) of Turkmenistan. During the discussions, participants addressed issues related to strategic planning, alignment of various national policies in the field of natural resource management, and the importance of evidence-based approaches and modern technologies, including the use of satellite data for drought monitoring and land degradation assessment.

Special attention was given to the interlinkages between the NAPCD and other national initiatives, such as the development of a strategy to mitigate the risks of sand and dust storms, and the National Drought Action Plan. Participants discussed the existing legal and institutional framework of the land use system, as well as the integration of Land Degradation Neutrality principles into the country’s land management system.

The event was attended by representatives of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and key ministries and agencies of Turkmenistan, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Mejlis, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the State Committee of Turkmenistan on Statistics, and other relevant institutions. Scientific organizations, financial institutions, private sector representatives, and local authorities were also in attendance.

The event marked an important milestone in advancing approaches aimed at achieving land degradation neutrality as an integral part of national policy.