Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova participated in the high-level meeting on "The role of zero waste as a transformative solution in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals" held at the United Nations (UN) within the framework of her business trip to New York City of the United States of America.

According to the press and public relations department of the Milli Majlis, the high-level meeting was dedicated to the resolution of the UN General Assembly adopted on the basis of the "Zero Waste" initiative put forward by the First Lady of the Republic of Turkey, Emina Erdogan.

Speaking at the event, Emina Erdoğan said that people are a part of the existing diversity on our planet with deep bonds in a balanced and measured way.

He noted that in this regard, we should be sensitive to the future sustainability of the Earth, which hosts millions of living things.

Protecting our planet is the responsibility of each of us.

In his speech, he drew attention to other global problems such as waste, climate change, food shortage, and said that we, as humanity, should fight against these problems together.

In these matters, as in all other matters, the world is bigger than five.

Then Speaker of Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova gave a speech.

Stating that the event was dedicated to a very relevant topic, speaker Sahiba Gafarova said that environmental protection is of great importance among all the serious problems faced by humanity.

He emphasized that it is our common responsibility to make the world better for the sake of current and future generations.

Sahiba Gafarova, in this sense, noted the importance of the "Zero waste" initiative put forward by the first lady of the Republic of Turkey, Emina Erdogan.

Appreciating that this initiative, which was put forward at the national level in 2017, has gained worldwide support in the form of a resolution of the UN General Assembly, he pointed out that the Republic of Azerbaijan has demonstrated its support for this resolution by being its co-author.

At the same time, the chairman of the Milli Majlis emphasized that the first lady of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva signed the "Declaration on Global Commitment to Zero Waste for the World, Our Common Home".

It was noted in the speech that a comprehensive approach to environmental protection with wide application of all elements is the only effective way to success.

In this sense, the Sustainable Development Goals are an important framework for achieving our common goals.

According to speaker Sahiba Gafarova, who stated that this issue is a priority for Azerbaijan, the national plans and strategies adopted in our country are adapted to the priorities and goals of the Sustainable Development Goals, with special attention to environmental issues.

Thus, a clean environment and green development have been identified as one of the five priority areas of the new development strategy until 2030.

Further development of the efficient waste management system in the socio-economic development strategy for 2022-2026,

In his speech, the chairman of the Milli Majlis noted that all countries have a moral and legal obligation to protect the environment for the sake of current and future generations.

Unfortunately, not all countries comply with these obligations.

According to him, the occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territories by Armenia for nearly 30 years was also accompanied by environmental terrorism.

Armenia destroyed our forests and nature reserves, illegally exploited our natural resources, polluted the land and rivers, including the transboundary rivers flowing from Armenia to Azerbaijan.

After liberating its territories from Armenian occupation in 2020, Azerbaijan began large-scale reconstruction and restoration works in those territories.

Sahiba Gafarova pointed out that currently in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur "

At the end of the speech, the speaker once again noted the importance of the event and wished success to the work of the meeting.