New York, United States – Kazakhstan's Minister of Ecology, Geology, and Natural Resources, Zulfiya Suleimenova, met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres on March 24th in New York to discuss sustainable water management plans.

Guterres commended Kazakhstan's efforts and highlighted the country's active contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The two also discussed Kazakhstan's leading initiative to establish a UN SDG Regional Hub for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty.

Suleimenova led the Kazakh delegation at the 2023 United Nations Water Conference, held in New York from March 22nd to 24th. This was the first global freshwater conference in 50 years.

During a panel discussion at the conference, Suleimenova shared a moving story about her meeting with residents of the Aral Sea region. "Two years ago, a fisherman in the village of Tautobe in the Aral region told me, 'Our dream is for it to rain and snow. Because if water reaches the islands, it will directly affect the well-being of the people who live there,'" she wrote on her Facebook page.

The Aral Sea, once the fourth largest lake in the world, is now considered one of the greatest environmental disasters after its water levels shrank to less than 10% of its original size.

"This year, we have made every effort to supply as much water as possible to the islands. In the first half of 2023 alone, we supplied more than 1 billion cubic meters of water to the Aral Sea, which is more than the total amount supplied last year, which was 800 million cubic meters," she added.

During an interview with the UN Economic Commission for Europe during the conference, Suleimenova outlined the fundamental principles for accelerating countries' efforts to address water-related challenges.