According to the report, at least 20 percent of land in Central Asia is already affected by degradation, while around 80 percent of the region’s territory is used for pasture-based livestock farming.

Therefore, the condition of pasturelands is directly linked to food security, livelihoods, and resilience to climate-related shocks.

«Today, more than 152 million hectares of land in Central Asia are affected by drought conditions, impacting more than half of the region’s population. A $5.4 million allocation has been approved for the regional project ‘Central Asia Mountain Ecosystems,’ which will be implemented jointly with the World Bank. A regional program ‘The Central Asia Water and Land Nexus’ has also been launched with a budget of $26 million,» the statement says.