In the afternoon of 27 September, the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon in New York City also took part and was first to speak at the Interactive Dialogue of the UN Summit “Protecting our Planet and Combating Climate Change” which took place in the UN headquarters.
At the outset, Head of Tajik State expressed thanks to the organizers of today's interactive dialogue dedicated to the subject of interest of the whole humanity - impact of climate change on our planet.
According to Emomali Rahmon, the last few decades have witnessed the negative impact of climate change that, to a certain extent, have been caused by human activities. The long-term observations of our experts, - said the President of Tajikistan, attest to the increased impact of climate change on environment and social and economic situation in the country and region.
It was noted that according to these observations, over the last 60 years the average annual air temperature in Tajikistan increased by 1 degree by Celsius; the number of days with heavy precipitation increased; natural meteorological disasters became more frequent and severe. As a result of the abnormal natural phenomena that have occurred this year, the economy of our country suffered a damage worth hundreds of millions of UN dollars. Regrettably, the natural disasters also claimed human lives.
In the opinion of the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, "It is becoming more obvious that climate change affects the quantity and quality of freshwater resources. The last decades witnessed a considerable degradation of Tajikistan glaciers that are vital for the entire Central Asia. According the available data, as a result of climate change about one thousand glaciers have disappeared on the territory of our country."
President of Tajikistan stated that in order to make the measures on climate change mitigation effective, "we should consolidate our efforts at the regional and international levels". In this connection, making use of this high tribune Emomali Rahmon proposed that in Central Asia development of a comprehensive regional strategy for adaptation to climate change became urgent long ago. "Such a strategy,- said the President, should include adaptation measures that in mid- and long-term perspective will ensure water security in the region."
In conclusion of his speech, Emomali Rahmon highlighted that within the framework of the preparation for the 21st Conference of the parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Tajikistan has prepared its own intended nationally determined contributions (INDC) that incorporates the assessment of the current situation and scenarios of further development of the country.