ArmInfo. Alain-Richard Donwahi, the President of the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) arrived in Armenia.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Environment of Armenia, the UNCCD COP 15 President arrived in Yerevan at the invitation of the Minister of Environment of the Republic Hakob Simidyan. This is already his second visit to Armenia.
In 2023, the second meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought (IWG on drought) and a regional capacity development workshop were held in Yerevan. Minister Simidian and UNCCD COP 15 President Donwahi also held a bilateral meeting in the UAE within the framework of the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28).
During the meeting in Yerevan, Minister Simidyan stated that there are effective and strong partnerships between the parties. An agreement was discussed to form a joint working group and a decision was made to take more active steps in this direction. An agreement was reached on closer cooperation within the framework of the UN Conventions "On Biodiversity" and "Combating Desertification".
In this vein, the Minister presented the steps taken by the Republic of Armenia to prevent desertification and drought within the framework of the climate agenda, touched upon issues related to planting forests and increasing forest areas, effective management of water resources and wise use of natural resources. The parties agreed to continue cooperation, mutual visits within the framework of the convention and consider the possibilities of implementing new programs and activities.