Central Asia, home to 56 million people in 5 countries, is the most landlocked region in the world, making it incredibly difficult to take advantage of its vast natural gas and oil reserves. Uzbekistan in particular suffers from this challenge.
In May, the UNDP held a "Strengthening partnerships for Human Development in Central Asia" conference in Kyrgyzstan. For the Uzbek government, the focus was on how to achieve the MDGs by 2015. UNDP projects in the country range from:
- public finance reform
- regional microfinance schemes
- civil society and gender empowerment
- water governance
- energy and environmental sustainability
This list is far from exhaustive, and Uzbek officials have expressed gratitude to the UNDP for its commitment to development in the region. See here for an interview with Fikret Akcura, UNDP Resident Representative of Uzbekistan.
