FAO's task during the Regional Science and Innovation Week is to offer governments, research institutions, civil society organizations and the private sector a platform for discussion and exchange of experience in the field of integration of science, research, innovation, as well as mechanisms for interaction with policy in the process of accelerating the transition to more sustainable, inclusive and immune to external influences agro-food systems in Europe and Central Asia.
The Day of Science and Innovation in Tashkent is organized by the FAO Country Office in Uzbekistan in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Tashkent State Agrarian University. The event is dedicated to the integration of science, practice and policy for the further implementation of Integrated Land Management (ILM) in Uzbekistan. It was attended by about 50 people, including professors, research scientists, representatives of relevant ministries and departments, as well as heads of farms.
It was noted that conservation and rational use of land resources occupy an important place in the FAO mandate, which is aimed at ensuring food security. Soils are the basis for food production and many essential ecosystem services. It was emphasized that sustainable management of soil resources using advanced innovative methods contributes to improving the nutritional value of agricultural products, as well as adaptation and mitigation of the effects of climate change.
With the financial support of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), FAO is implementing major projects in Uzbekistan aimed at strengthening environmental sustainability, rational use of natural resources, respect for nature, and conservation of biodiversity. These include the regional project "Integrated Management of natural resources in drought-prone and saline agricultural landscapes of Central Asia and Turkey", as well as the projects "Program for assessing the impact of food systems on land use and restoration in Uzbekistan" and "Sustainable management of forests and pastures in arid ecosystems of Uzbekistan", which are implemented jointly with the Ministry of Ecology, environmental protection and climate change of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Within the framework of the Day of Science and Innovation, speeches were made on the topic of applying the achievements of science and innovation for the further implementation of integrated land management in Uzbekistan within the framework of the above-mentioned FAO projects. Representatives of scientific circles, FAO experts, specialists of ministries and departments discussed issues of further development of cooperation in this direction.
