The Republic of Kazakhstan is a Party of the UNECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo Convention) since 2001 and since early 2017 has been considering to join its Protocol on strategic environmental assessment (Protocol on SEA).

The first national round table which is scheduled to take place in Astana, Rixsos Hotel from 15 to 16 November 2017 will be devoted to the legal implementation EIA and SEA in Kazakhstan in line with Espoo Convention and its Protocol on SEA.

The event is organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan and the OSCE Programme Office in Astana in the framework of the EU / UNDP / UNECE Joint Project "Supporting Kazakhstan's Transition to a Green Economy Model".

The aim of the round table is to assess feasibility and need of introducing amendments to the Environmental Code of Kazakhstan with a view of aligning it with the provisions of the Espoo Convention and its Protocol on SEA. Representatives of Parliament, relevant Ministries, local authorities, members of the Parliament and other stakeholders, such as NGOs, consultants, private sector representatives are invited to take part at the start-up event.

The participants of the round table will get familiar with:

• Existing European practice in developing EIA and SEA legislation;
• Results of the gap analysis of the national legislation of Kazakhstan related to implementation of the Convention and the Protocol;
• Findings of the UNECE guidance on enhancing consistency between the Convention and the environmental impact assessment within the framework of State ecological expertise in countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.

The participants will further be invited to provide their views regarding the feasibility of amending the existing national environmental assessment framework. Based on the results of the round table a team of national and international consultants in close cooperation with and under the guidance of the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan will develop recommendations to further support the country in its efforts to strengthen national legislative framework and capacities for application of EIA and SEA as tools for greening economies in line with the international standards.