Uzbekistan Aral Sea Afforestation (Forestry Agency)
Tashkent, Uzbekistan · Government program · National · since 2017
State saxaul planting on the dried Aral seabed (2 million ha reported since 2018) and the Yashil Makon greening project
About
Uzbekistan's Forestry Agency (since May 2025 the Agency for the Development of Forests and Green Zones and Combating Desertification, under the ecology ministry that became the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change in late 2025) runs the state afforestation of the Aralkum, the desert left by the shrinking Aral Sea in Karakalpakstan. Each winter-spring since 2018 it sows saxaul, cherkez, kandym and other desert shrubs by machinery and aircraft to fix salt-dust from the exposed seabed; the government reports protective plantations on 2 million hectares for 2018-2025 and aims for 2.1 million hectares of forest in the Aral region. The same agency implements the nationwide 'Yashil Makon' (Green Space) project launched in late 2021 to plant 200 million tree and shrub seedlings a year and raise green cover to 30% by 2030; the National Committee on Ecology reports 872 million seedlings in its first four years and more than 200 million in 2025. Survival on the seabed depends on rainfall, and a 2026 presidential review of Yashil Makon shifted emphasis to seedling quality and survival after plantings dried out.
What they run
Mechanised and aerial sowing of saxaul and other desert shrubs on the exposed Aral seabed in Karakalpakstan to stabilise sand and salt dust, with annual saxaul nurseries of at least 100 ha and 7,800 tonnes of desert-plant seed collected.
Nationwide greening project planting about 200 million tree and shrub seedlings a year along roads, in mahallas, schools, hospitals and forest-fund land, targeting 30% green cover by 2030.
Trees by type of work
| Activity | Trees | Years |
|---|---|---|
| 🏙️ Urban forestry | 872,000,000 | 2023–2025 |
Only figures attached to a named program count here. Organization-wide totals sit in the table below.
The numbers
| Metric | Year | Value | Program | Confidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hectares restoredto date | 2024 | 1,700,000 | Aral Sea dried-seabed afforestation | Self-reported | sourceMongabay, 29 May 2024, citing Uzbekistan's Forestry Agency: 1.7 million hectares of forest planted on the Uzbek side of the Aral seabed over the past five years, with 150,000-200,000 ha more planned for 2024; scientist Turaxon Ziyotov estimates sapling survival at 50-70% in wet years and about 30% in dry years |
| Hectares restoredto date | 2025 | 2,000,000 | Aral Sea dried-seabed afforestation | Self-reported | sourceForestry Agency news, 6 Mar 2026: protective forest plantations 'created on 2 million hectares of the dried seabed of the Aral Sea during 2018-2025' |
| Trees planted | 2023 | 220,000,000 | Yashil Makon (Green Space) national project | Self-reported | sourceMinistry of Ecology release, 6 May 2025: 220 million seedlings planted under Yashil Makon in 2023 |
| Trees planted | 2024 | 227,000,000 | Yashil Makon (Green Space) national project | Self-reported | sourceMinistry of Ecology release, 6 May 2025: Yashil Makon seedlings planted by year - 86 million (autumn 2021), 203 million (2022), 220 million (2023), 227 million (2024); 136 million in spring 2025 |
| Trees planted | 2025 | 200,000,000 | Yashil Makon (Green Space) national project | Self-reported | sourceNational Committee on Ecology and Climate Change, 24 Dec 2025: 'more than 200 million tree and shrub saplings were planted nationwide under the project' in 2025; national green cover reached 14.1% |
| Trees plantedto date | 2025 | 872,000,000 | Yashil Makon (Green Space) national project | Self-reported | sourceForestry Agency, 21 May 2025: 872 million tree and shrub seedlings planted over the project's first four years (autumn 2021-spring 2025); 136.9 million in spring 2025 against a 125 million plan |
How they report
What earned it
- 15/20 Publishes annual tree figures: 3 years of annual figures on record (5 points each, up to 4 years)
- 15/15 Figures are recent: Latest annual figure is for 2025
- 10/10 Every figure has a public source: 6 of 6 figures link to a source
- 0/15 Publishes financials or cost per tree: No financial figure recorded
- 0/15 Reports survival or monitoring: No survival or monitoring figure
- 0/10 Independently verified figure: All figures are the organization's own
- 10/10 Breaks figures down by program: Figures attached to named programs
- 0/5 Reports volunteers or events: No volunteer figures or events
- Latest annual figure
- 200,000,000 trees in 2025 (-12% on the year before)
- Compare
- Put Uzbekistan Aral Sea Afforestation (Forestry Agency) next to others · method
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