BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 10. The UN-backed Blueing the Caspian Sea initiative is expected to strengthen environmental cooperation and knowledge exchange among Caspian states.
UN Resident Coordinator in Turkmenistan Xiaojun Grace Wang said this in an exclusive interview with Trend, responding to a question about the practical activities expected to involve Turkmenistan under the initiative.
"The GEF-supported Blueing the Caspian Sea initiative covers three riparian countries — Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan — bringing together several UN agencies and international partners," Wang said.
She said the initiative is being implemented through two complementary tracks, combining national-level activities with a regional component.
"The initiative runs through two complementary tracks: a national window, financed by the GEF through the World Bank and executed by UNOPS, and a regional window, financed directly through the GEF to UNEP and implemented with the Tehran Convention Secretariat as the executing body," Wang said.
According to her, the two tracks are designed to address environmental challenges through monitoring, biodiversity planning and coordinated action across the Caspian region.
"Together, these tracks are designed to strengthen pollution monitoring and biodiversity planning in targeted sites across the Caspian Sea, while promoting coordinated regional action on pollution control, biodiversity conservation, and climate adaptation," she said.
Wang highlighted several key areas for the initiative in Turkmenistan, including environmental monitoring, biodiversity research, and ecosystem protection.
"For Turkmenistan specifically, the most relevant areas of engagement are expected to include strengthening environmental monitoring systems, improving the scientific evidence base for biodiversity conservation, and supporting ecosystem protection and restoration efforts," Wang said.
She added that these activities are intended to provide a stronger basis for understanding environmental changes in the Caspian Sea and for making related decisions.
"These activities will help generate the knowledge needed for more informed decision-making and deepen understanding of the environmental changes affecting the Caspian Sea," she said.
At the same time, she stressed that the initiative is expected to strengthen cooperation among the Caspian littoral states on environmental issues that extend beyond individual national borders.
"The initiative also opens up opportunities for enhanced cooperation and knowledge exchange among the Caspian littoral states on shared environmental challenges that cross national borders," Wang said.
She also highlighted the importance of understanding how environmental pressures affect communities socially and economically.
"Because environmental pressures affect communities in different ways, strengthening the evidence base on their social and economic impacts — including how these differ between women and men — can help shape more inclusive and effective policies and interventions," Wang said.
More broadly, Wang said the initiative is linked to the UN’s wider work on environmental governance, climate resilience, sustainable resource management and science-based decision-making.
"By bringing together governments, international organizations, and technical institutions across both the national and regional tracks, it can help translate regional commitments into practical action while building countries' capacity to address pollution, biodiversity loss, and the impacts of climate change," she said.
Wang emphasized that the initiative is ultimately based on the need for coordinated action across the Caspian region.
"Ultimately, the initiative rests on the understanding that the Caspian Sea's future depends on collective action. Through stronger regional cooperation, shared knowledge, and coordinated implementation, it can contribute to a more resilient, sustainable, and prosperous future for the entire Caspian region," she added.
Meanwhile, the United Nations in Turkmenistan serves as a development partner, endorsing national priorities aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals through the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2021-2025/2026-2030). The Country Team, led by the UN Resident Coordinator, collaborates with the government on health, education, economic, and social reforms. Key focuses include people-centered governance, inclusive economic growth, and quality services. Major UN agencies involved are UNDP, WHO, UNICEF, and UNODC.
Additionally, the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia addresses regional security. Key projects encompass legal aid strengthening, violence protection for women and children, trade improvement, water resource management, and pandemic preparedness, supported by significant government financial contributions.
Water and environmental sustainability are also an important part of the UN’s cooperation with Turkmenistan. The UN supports the country in areas including water security, climate resilience, ecosystem management, and environmental monitoring, while its current 2026-2030 Cooperation Framework identifies environment and climate change mitigation and adaptation as one of three strategic priorities.
Notably, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) is an international family of environmental funds that supports developing countries in addressing global environmental challenges. Established in 1991, it provides primarily grant financing for projects related to biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, chemicals, and waste.
The GEF also serves as a financial mechanism for several major international environmental agreements, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, the Minamata Convention on Mercury and the BBNJ Agreement. The World Bank serves as the GEF Trustee, while a network of partner agencies helps develop and implement GEF-supported projects.
