January 18, 2023, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan – Today, USAID, in partnership with the Public Association Enterprise Tebigy Kuwwat, an ecological civil society organization, hosted a roundtable for government agencies, civil society organizations, and private companies to discuss and develop by-laws for the country’s 2019 Law On Environmental Audit.
USAID Central Asia Acting Regional Mission Director Luis Rivera noted: “USAID’s Governance Support Program (GSP) partners with the Government of Turkmenistan and public organizations to advance the legal framework and to draft actionable environmental regulation that support Turkmenistan’s development agenda. Specifically, in 2023, we plan to jointly develop a by-law that outlines requirements and a step-by-step procedure for evaluating and certifying environmental auditors in Turkmenistan.”
The proposed by-law will boost the application of the environmental audit law and ensure Turkmenistan’s compliance with international policies. This initiative is also aligned with the Government of Turkmenistan’s and USAID’s objectives for stronger regional cooperation in Central Asia, effective mitigation of environmental risks and better management of shared natural resources.
The government stakeholders had an opportunity to discuss and provide constructive feedback on the draft by-law. Once comments are incorporated, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan, USAID’s National Partner, will review and enforce the by-law.
The USAID-funded Governance Support Program, implemented by the QED Group LLC, in partnership with the Government of Turkmenistan, aims to strengthen accountability, effectiveness, and transparency of governance in the country.
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USAID is the world’s premier international development agency and a catalytic actor driving development results. For more information on USAID Central Asia, please visit: https://www.usaid.gov/central-asia-regional.