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1400/12/07

Developing Cooperation between Iran and Kazakhstan in the Field of Water, Soil and Natural Resources Protection

Massoud Mansour, Deputy Minister and Head of FRWO, met with Talgat Amangeldievich Momyshev, Deputy Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan and reviewed the ways to develop cooperation between Iran and Kazakhstan in water, soil and natural resources protection.

According to FRWO’s website, a meeting between Deputy Minister and Head of FRWO with Deputy Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan chaired by Dr. Massoud Mansour, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Jahad and Head of the Forests, Range and Watershed Management Organization (FRWO) with the agenda of developing cooperation between Iran and Kazakhstan in the field of water, soil and natural resources protection was held at FRWO's Headquarters on Sunday, 20 February 2022.

In this meeting, Dr. Mansour referring to the capacities and capabilities of our country in the field of afforestation, rangeland management, desertification control and integrated watershed management measures, emphasized on using the knowledge of Iranian experts and transferring our country's experiences to Kazakhstan.

Head of FRWO reiterated that based on "Forests and Rangelands Nationalization Law" approved in 1962, As of the mentioned date, all lands and properties therein including forests, rangelands, wooded lands and forestlands are announced public property and belong to the Government, even if before the ratification of the present law they belong to individuals/private owners.

"The law obliges us to manage natural resources in the form of technical plans and by natural and legal persons," he said.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture Jahad and Head of FRWO stated: "The role and participation of the people in natural resources management is considered to be the driving force and the people cooperate with FRWO in the form of natural resources projects and in this regard, about one million rural and nomadic families depend on the country's rangelands."

Deputy Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan expressed his satisfaction with the meeting and referring to cooperation of Iran with Kazakhstan in the field of agriculture and natural resources management, reiterated: "Iran can establish good cooperation with Kazakhstan by transferring experiences."

Talgat Amangeldievich Momyshev called the drying up of the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan as the biggest environmental challenge of his country and said: "As the lake dried up, hundreds of thousands of tons of salt dust are produced annually and dispersed via the air. Therefore, Iran can contribute to Kazakhstan by using the work of its experts and technologies to revitalize the Aral Sea, afforestation in desert and non-desert lands, as well as by providing technical services in the field of integrated watershed management (IWM)."

Referring to the issue of afforestation in Kazakhstan, Mr. Momyshev said: "In 2021, about 61,000 hectares of afforestation have been carried out in Kazakhstan, and currently the country's forest area is 6 million hectares."

Deputy Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan noted:"There are many possible arrangements for cooperation between Iran and Kazakhstan in the field of agriculture and natural resources management, and our experts have agreed to use the technical and specialized services of Iranian contractors to train and transfer knowledge and experience".

Based on this report, at the end of the meeting, Deputy Minister and Head of FRWO dedicated the symbol of the oak tree to Deputy Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan as memento.

It is worth mentioning that before entering the meeting, Mr. Momyshev visited the Memorial of Natural Resources' Martyrs at FRWO and planted a sapling around the Memorial.

http://www.frw.ir/02/En/News/News.aspx?nwsId=93859