The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Regional Office for Afghanistan, Central Asia, Iran and Pakistan, successfully held its annual Programme Steering Committee (PSC) Meeting of the UNODC Programme for Central Asia 2022-2025 on 6 November 2025 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. The hybrid-format event brought together over 100 participants from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
The PSC Meeting served as a platform to review the Programme’s key achievements in 2025, endorse strategic and operational priorities for 2026, and initiate consultations on the new regional programme cycle for 2027-2030. Participants acknowledged UNODC’s ongoing contribution to strengthening regional cooperation in areas such as drug control, crime prevention, criminal justice, anti-corruption, border management, and health-related issues.
The meeting was hosted by the Government of Turkmenistan, which was represented by Mr. Ovezgeldy Kakaliyev, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Turkmenistan.
Mr. Oliver Stolpe, UNODC Regional Representative for Afghanistan, Central Asia, Iran and Pakistan, emphasized during his opening remarks that “over the past four years, since the launch of the Programme for Central Asia in November 2021, it has successfully served as a strategic framework for UNODC’s technical assistance to the Central Asian states, helping to address both traditional and emerging development challenges and security threats.”
During this period, significant changes in the regional situation are being observed. Opium cultivation and production in Afghanistan have decreased dramatically over the past three years. At the same time, there is a substantial increase in the seizures of synthetic drugs and new psychoactive substances.
Mr. Stolpe stressed that “at a time when multilateralism is being challenged globally, and funding is increasingly constrained, such meetings provide a valuable platform to exchange views and learn the needs and priorities of the member states.”
The meeting reaffirmed UNODC’s commitment to working closely with regional stakeholders to strengthen institutional capacities, promote coordinated responses to drug trafficking and organized crime, and enhance justice and health systems across Central Asia. ///UNODC Regional Office for Afghanistan, Central Asia, Iran and Pakistan, 7 November 2025