The Millennium Development Goals are a
plan of action that most countries in the world have undersigned to
improve people’s lives by the year 2015. The eight MDGs embrace all
aspects of human development from economic well being to child and
mother health, from education to gender parity. While some goals are
straightforward such as “Halting the Spread of HIV/AIDS by the Year 2015”
others, such as environmental sustainability, have raised a few
eyebrows. What is environmental sustainability and how its achievement
can directly impact on people’s wellbeing?
In Uzbekistan, Goal 7 was made more concrete by bringing it closer
to people’s understanding. In the national context, environmental
sustainability means water and sanitation for everybody today and
tomorrow. It also means gas for all in cities and villages and clean
air, both in cities an rural areas. Protection of wild life in all its
forms is also part of the goal, because human development cannot be
achieved if it damages animal and plants and the environment on which
people depend for their well being.
With the support of the European Union and UNDP, local authorities and communities have shown how the MDG 7 “
Ensure Environmental Sustainability” can be achieved. The EU/UNDP supported project “
Enhancement of Living Standards in Namangan Region”
now in its second year of implementation, supports the three local
governments of Chartak, Kasansay and Mingbulok and 50 selected mahallas
to shape their own development. It does so by offering them concrete
opportunities to rehabilitate social infrastructures such as water,
sanitation and gas supply as well as health and education facilities
and by improving people’s access to them.
Bulon is a community of approximately 4,000 people located in
Chartak district in the northern part of Namangan region. In July 2005
it expressed an interest to work with the ELS project and was selected
to participate in a pilot scheme launched by Chartak local Government
called “
Our Community, our MDGs”. After identifying
lack of gas as their main problems and one of the causes for the
degradation of their natural environment, the people of Bulon agreed to
cost share with the ELS project the installation of 1 km of gas pipes
and repair the local gas distribution station
1.
In October 2005, after working out the distribution of labour, the
district Khokimiyat, the mahalla committee and Bulon community began to
work side by side with a local contractor hired by the project.
Three months later, with gas in their homes, the 4,000 people of
Bulon Mahalla can truly say that they have contributed to improve their
own living standards. In the true spirit of Uzbek community solidarity,
a number of poor families received support from the Mahalla Fund to
have their houses connected to the gas pipeline free of charge. This is
undoubtedly a significant achievement, considering that approximately
27% of people in rural areas in Uzbekistan still use firewood for
cooking2.
With gas in their house, Bulon people have now access to a
concrete alternative source of energy to firewood. Gas stoves are more
efficient than wood stoves and do not pollute the air. By using gas,
Bulon people will use a more efficient form of energy than wood. People
in the mahalla will not have to spend time and effort to cut down trees
to keep their houses warm and cook food. With more trees and more
forests, there will be more possibilities for plants and animal. With
more trees and forests and animals there will be better air and a
better life for everybody.
Thanks to the support of the EC and the combined efforts of UNDP and the local authorities, MDG goals 7 “Ensure Environmental Sustainability” makes now more sense to people in Bulon. This is mainly because the MDG has become directly relevant to their lives.
[1] In Uzbekistan supply of natural gas covers
77% of dwellings, 67.5% in rural areas. In: Living Standards Strategy
of the Government of Uzbekistan, 2004
[2] In: Country Gender Assessment, Asian Development Bank 2005.
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