Sapar Palvanov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Turkmenistan to Belgium, held a meeting with Octavian Bivol, UNICEF Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia. This was reported by the press office of the Turkmen diplomatic mission.

The parties discussed current cooperation and prospects for joint work in the areas of human capital development, the protection of children’s rights, support for young people and the improvement of social policy.

During the meeting, it was emphasised that Turkmenistan regards cooperation with the UN and its specialised agencies as an important component of its contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The participants paid particular attention to investment in education, healthcare and social protection for children and young people as key factors for long-term socio-economic development.

Octavian Bivol noted that more than half of Turkmenistan’s population is under 30, describing this as a significant advantage for the country’s future development. The parties agreed that supporting the younger generation would enable this demographic potential to be utilised as effectively as possible.

A UNICEF initiative to hold a presentation in Brussels of the regional report ‘Generation 2050 in Central Asia’ was also discussed. The Ambassador of Turkmenistan supported this idea, proposing that the event be used as a platform for dialogue between the countries of Central Asia, European Union institutions, international financial organisations and development partners on issues relating to investment in human capital and the strengthening of regional cooperation.

Following the meeting, the parties reaffirmed their readiness to further develop their partnership and implement joint regional initiatives.