ICIMOD’s Director General David Molden,ICIMOD’s Deputy Director General Dr. Eklabya Sharma, Second Secretary, Deputy Head of Development Cooperation, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany Florens Vogt, and Chief Technical Advisor Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Kai Windhorst signd an agreement to support policy dialogues for transboundary cooperation across the HKH recently.

According to a press release issued by German Embassy, improved access to information about conservation, sustainable usage of natural resources, and adaptation to climate change in and across the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region is crucial to effective transboundary cooperation.

Signing an agreement to forward the aim of effective transboundary cooperation, Germany has agreed to a EUR 1,000,000 project supporting the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in hosting policy dialogues to analyze both existing cooperation mechanisms in the HKH region and worldwide best practices, and to work towards a joint roadmap for transboundary cooperation in the HKH.

The project will be jointly implemented by ICIMOD and Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

German Embassy representative, Florens Vogt said, “This agreement is the product of five years of cooperation on transboundary conservation in landscapes of the HKH between Germany and ICIMOD.”

ICIMOD’s Director General David Molden also affirmed, saying, “It brings our partners in the HKH regional member countries a step closer together in managing mountain biodiversity in a concerted way.”