Astana – 24 April 2026
Secretary General of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), Dr. Asad M. Khan, visited the headquarters of the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS) in Astana to hold a meeting with H.E. Berik Aryn, Director General of the IOFS.
The dialogue focused on addressing the pressing challenges of food security and water stress across the overlapping membership of both organizations. Recognizing the severe and contrasting impacts of climate change in the region – from extreme droughts and shrinking seabeds to devastating floods – both dignitaries underscored the critical need to pool resources and capacities for advanced water management. In this regard, the IOFS invited ECO representatives to participate in an upcoming offline workshop on water resource management scheduled for June, which aims to support broader UN initiatives. Furthermore, the IOFS proposed organizing a joint side event dedicated to agriculture and climate change during the upcoming COP31.
The meeting also highlighted concrete programmatic collaboration in the agricultural sector. The Secretary General outlined ECO’s keen interest in establishing an “ECO seed vault” to encourage regional seed trade and develop climate-resilient, high-yield local crop varieties. The IOFS leadership shared updates on their successful ongoing project to disseminate new seed varieties among several countries, including Kazakhstan, and highlighted their active initiative – in cooperation with the FAO – to eradicate the Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) animal disease within the ECO region.
The meeting concluded with a mutual commitment to continue exploring specific, concrete proposals for joint action, leveraging the specialized knowledge of the IOFS to foster lasting food security and sustainable development throughout the region.
