At the invitation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), based on the Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2025 between the Executive Committee of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea and UNEP, as well as the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan, on 9 December 2025, the Chairman of the EC IFAS, Askhat Orazbay, participated in the 7th session of the UNEP Assembly (UNEA-7) on the theme “Advancing Sustainable Solutions for a Sustainable Planet”, held at the UNEP headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.
The EC IFAS Chairman spoke at the side event “Drying Seas and Lakes – A 21st Century Global Catastrophe" ,with a focus on the Aral and Caspian Seas. He presented the international community with information on the Aral environmental disaster, the measures taken by IFAS founding states and donor partners in the Aral Sea basin, and called on international development partners to intensify joint activities within the framework of the 4th Action Program for Assistance to the countries of the Aral Sea Basin.
On the sidelines of UNEA-7, a series of meetings were held to discuss support for IFAS efforts and actions in the Aral Sea basin, including meetings with Tatiana Molchan, Executive Secretary of the UNECE, and Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.
