UCA Participates at Consultation Meeting for UNDP Report

Dr Roman Mogilevskii, Associate Director and Senior Research Fellow of the Institute of Public Policy and Administration at the University of Central Asia (UCA), was invited at the Regional Consultation: Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives and Transformation in Europe, Turkey, and Central Asia organised by the United Nations Development Programme.

Experts from the region were invited in November 2021 to a hybrid consultation meeting for the Human Development Report 2021-22. The speakers engaged in a broad discussion on emerging challenges posed by the Anthropocene and technological innovation in the region, and how climate-conflict risks are embedded within these transformations.

Dr Mogilevskii was the only Central Asian expert speaking at the meeting, and contributed to the reaction of post-Soviet states to the pandemic of COVID-19. He noted that, in general, the governments and societies of the region were not prepared for this major shock. This has been revealed through inconsistent and very limited social distancing measures, insufficient support to the population and businesses during lockdowns, widespread vaccine hesitancy resulting in high mortality rates, and one of the lowest vaccination rates in these countries in the world. The near universal literacy and school enrolment in all countries of the region have not transformed into an educated response of the societies to this major threat to human development. He suggested a re-orientation of the education system in the region towards providing functional literacy and development skills that allow a swift and prudent response to future uncertainties and unexpected shocks.