Kyrgyzstan takes part in 9th meeting of UNODC Regional Programme Committee

Bishkek, Dec. 16, 2020. /Kabar/. A delegation of Kyrgyzstan led by Head of Service for Combating Illegal Drug Trafficking (SCIDT) of the Interior Ministry Bakyt Matmusayev participated in the Ninth Steering Committee Meeting of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Programme for Afghanistan and Neighboring Countries. The press service of the Kyrgyz Internal Ministry reported that the meeting was held via videoconference. The delegation also included representatives of the competent bodies of the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Prosecutor's Office, the State Forensics Service under the Internal Ministry, the Financial Intelligence Service, the Ministries of Education and Health. During the meeting, Deborah Lyons, the UN Secretary – General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan expressed commitment to the continued implementation of Phase-3 of the program. The main objective of the UNODC Program is to develop international and regional cooperation of the competent authorities of participating states (Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) on issues related to drug control, countering transnational organized crime, as well as support in strengthening their logistical and human resource capacity. During the virtual meeting, the participants positively assessed the results of their work for 2019-2020 and discussed the action plan for 2021. In his remarks, Head of the SCIDT of the Kyrgyz Ministry Matmusayev noted international and regional cooperation remain proven and crucial elements in the fight against drug trafficking and transnational organized crime, and expressed the Kyrgyz Republic’s readiness to further develop cooperation under Phase-3 of the Regional Program.