Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia

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The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture hosted the Founders of the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus).

The Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, Mr. Kakha Kakabadze, made opening remarks at the meeting with the Founders of the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus).

According to the Deputy, the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus has been implementing several critical initiatives in the environmental protection field on the local and international levels since its foundation.

"Peace and stability in the Caucasus region are top priorities for Georgia. Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus) expresses the readiness of the countries for active cooperation in environmental issues and adoption of regional approaches," said Mr. Kakha Kakabadze.

The Acting Head of the Cooperation Delegation of the European Union to Georgia, Mrs. Catalin Gherman, emphasized the importance of the activities taken by the Caucasus Regional Environmental Center in environmental protection and sustainable development in 2022.

"We support the vision of the Caucasus Regional Environmental Center - to actively confront environmental challenges at the national and regional level and to activate work in waste management, circular economy, and climate change,"- Mrs. Catalin Gherman stated.

During the meeting at the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, the parties discussed a broad range of issues, specifically, the Updated Regional Strategy of REC Caucasus; activating the role of the Center to achieve the  UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030, both at the national and regional levels; The potential of REC Caucasus as a coordinating organization to increase Georgian, Armenian, and Azerbaijani transboundary water cooperation in resolving the quantitative and qualitative water challenges in the Kura-Aras river basin; The active participation of REC Caucasus in the implementation of the European Union Water Framework Directive; The importance of working closely with the Caucasus Regional Environmental Centre to enhance policy and law; The role of the Centre as a facilitator to attract donor organizations during regional and bilateral negotiations; The necessity for climate change collaboration, which will contribute to adaptation and mitigation procedures in the mentioned direction.