Samarkand — June 3, 2026 — The Government of Uzbekistan, in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has officially launched the Nature4Health Uzbekistan Scoping Phase during the 71st Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council Meeting. The initiative marks Uzbekistan’s entry into Nature4Health Phase II and sets the stage for a multi-stakeholder process to integrate environmental dimensions into One Health and strengthen pandemic prevention.
IUCN Director General Dr Grethel Aguilar emphasized the urgency of upstream action: “More than 70 percent of emerging infectious diseases in humans are zoonotic in origin. Investing in nature is an investment in public health, pandemic prevention and sustainable development.”
The scoping phase will focus on Karakalpakstan, a region facing desertification, biodiversity loss, and the long-term impacts of the Aral Sea crisis. Here, ecological vulnerability and human–livestock–wildlife interactions highlight the need for preventive approaches that connect ecosystem, animal, and human health.
Deputy Minister for Ecology Dr Jusipbek Kazbekov stressed the national importance of the initiative: “Preventing the next pandemic cannot begin only after an outbreak occurs. It must start upstream, by reducing the environmental drivers that increase the risk of zoonotic spillover.”
Led by IUCN’s Central Asia Office and coordinated with the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change of Uzbekistan, the scoping phase will involve government institutions, conservation experts, health and veterinary sectors, and local communities. The process will culminate in an Implementation Project Document outlining how integrated, ecosystem-based prevention can reduce pandemic risks.
The initiative builds on IUCN’s experience in Viet Nam under Nature4Health Phase I and the 1Health4Nature project in Central Asia, reinforcing the regional relevance of One Health approaches. Funded by Germany’s BMUV through the Nature for Health Multi-Partner Trust Fund, the project underscores Uzbekistan’s growing leadership in ecosystem restoration, climate resilience, and preventive health strategies.
