OSCE supports opening of Aarhus Centre in Bishkek in 2015

The Kyrgyz State Agency on Environment Protection and Forestry and the OSCE Centre in Bishkek signed on 23 December 2014 a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Aarhus Centre in Bishkek in 2015.

“The Aarhus Centre in Bishkek will promote access to environmental information, enhance the capacity of the state to ensure greater public participation in decision-making, and will help to create an atmosphere of trust amongst all relevant stakeholders, most importantly civil society”, said Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek Ambassador Sergey Kapinos. “The OSCE will continue helping the Kyrgyz government meet institutional commitments in the sphere of sustainable development.”

The Aarhus Centre will distribute information and raise awareness on environmental matters. It will also play a central role in public awareness and access to justice on environmental issues.

The Aarhus Centres have been created to support the implementation of the United Nations Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, also known as the Aarhus Convention, signed in 1998. It is currently ratified by 45 European and Central Asian countries.

Kyrgyzstan ratified the Convention in 2001. With the OSCE support, the Aarhus Centre in Osh was established in 2004. This Centre specializes on issues such as sustainable mining; biodiversity conservation; participatory environmental assessments and action planning; compliance with environmental legislation; and the monitoring of uranium tailing sites. It also involves youth in environmental protection, promotes environmental journalism and strengthens the dialogue between government, local communities and civil society on environmental matters.  The Aarhus Centre in Bishkek will work closely with the Aarhus Centre in Osh in order to build a national dialogue on environmental issues.