Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek undertakes his first trip to the south of Kyrgyzstan
From 14 to 19 June 2021, Alexey Rogov, Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, visited the Jalal-Abad and Osh provinces to meet with local partners to discuss areas of co-operation.
Rogov visited the Public Environmental Center in the city of Mailuu-Suu, established in 2015 with OSCE and UNDP support. The Center provides an opportunity to engage all stakeholders in the rehabilitation of local uranium legacy sites. During a meeting with city mayor Nurlanbek Umarov, Rogov reaffirmed OSCE’s continued support to promote safe and sustainable economic and environmental development principles in Mailuu-Suu.
Rogov visited the Entrepreneurship Support Centers (ESC) in Osh and Jalal-Abad, which the OSCE helped set up in 2018 and 2019 respectively. The ESC aims to boost small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), including female entrepreneurship, by providing legal and business consultations, including through its tailor-made online mini-MBA courses. Stimulating SMEs is especially important to speed up economic recovery in Kyrgyzstan’s provinces during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rogov also met with Jalal-Abad province Governor Absattar Syrgabaev, who praised the OSCE supported Jalal-Abad – Namangan Business Forum that took place in early June. The Forum aimed to deepen cross-border trade links between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Recognizing the importance of local self-government’s role in fostering sustainable development, Rogov discussed capacity-building activities for representatives of the Jalal-Abad Regional Development Fund and local business community with Jalal-Abad city mayor Ernisbek Ormokov.
During the meeting with representatives of Women Initiative Groups (WIGs) in Osh, Rogov discussed on-going co-operation, including OSCE’s support to WIGs and local self-government bodies, in developing a Joint Action Plan on strengthening cross-border security. The latter activity is also part of the new National Action Plan on the implementation of the UNSCR 1325.
Rogov also visited the Osh Aarhus Centre, established with the OSCE support, which works to provide a platform for dialogue to engage citizens, local government and the private sector on environmental challenges.
Trafficking in persons is not just a transnational crime; it is a tragic loss of personal freedom. This was at the centre of a discussion between Rogov and the Programme Office’s local partner, the International Protection Support Center in Osh.
The trip ended with a meeting between Rogov and representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic in the south, to discuss further co-operation in southern provinces of the country.
Rogov expressed readiness to continue supporting activities, across all of Kyrgyzstan and across all three dimensions, within the Programme Office’s mandate and in line with OSCE commitments.