The First Ministerial Forum on Sustainable Development of the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) member states was held in Arkadag city. Ambassador Gismat Gozalov represented Azerbaijan at the forum. The Vice President of Iran, the Deputy Prime Ministers of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, the Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan, the Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Tajikistan, the Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives of Pakistan, the Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade of Kyrgyzstan, the Director General for Sectors and Public Investments of the General Directorate of Strategy and Budget of the Presidential Administration of Turkey, the UN Resident Coordinator in Turkmenistan, the Secretary General of the ECO, as well as heads of various ECO institutions participated at the Forum.

The forum primarily focused on enhancing collective efforts to advance the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, strengthening regional cooperation, and exploring cooperation prospects in areas such as climate change, ecology, trade, energy, transport and communications, as well as gender equality.

Ambassador G. Gozalov delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the Forum, as well as at a panel session on climate change held within the Forum. In his address at the opening ceremony of the forum, the ambassador emphasised Azerbaijan's commitment to sustainable development, highlighting that significant measures have been undertaken at the national level in alignment with the core principles of the 2030 Agenda, namely universality, inclusiveness, human rights, and policy coherence. In his speech, the ambassador underlined that our country has implemented national adaptations to 17 goals, 101 targets and 144 indicators under the SDGs, and that nearly 50 national strategies and state programs have been aligned with the SDGs during 2017–2023, with particular emphasis on the importance of "Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socio-Economic Development", "Socio-Economic Development Strategy for 2022–2026", and the "Great Return" State Program. He stated that Azerbaijan has established a platform between government agencies, the UN, the private sector and civil society through the SDG Dialogues initiative. The Ambassador highlighted the 14 initiatives put forward by our country at COP29, the determination of the climate finance target as one of the main achievements, and at the same time provided detailed information to the participants about Azerbaijan's green energy agenda and projects implemented in the field of alternative energy, and drew attention to Azerbaijan's role in combating climate change and ensuring global ecological stability.

During his remarks at the "Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability" panel held within the framework of the Forum, the ambassador drew attention Azerbaijan's green energy agenda and its position on international cooperation in the field of alternative energy. Touching on the renewable energy potential of Azerbaijan and large green energy projects implemented in our country, including in our territories liberated from occupation, he highlighted the steps taken in the direction of green energy transition in the region and the world. G. Gozalov also informed about the agreements reached on Central Asia within the framework of COP29, the importance of the initiatives implemented within the framework of CAREC and SPECA, and drew attention to the cooperation carried out within the framework of the Turkic States Organisation. The ambassador providing information about the strategic partnership agreement in the field of renewable energy signed with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan at the initiative of Azerbaijan and the green corridor to be implemented to transmit clean energy to Europe through the Caspian Sea, also stated that the environmental and transport issues of the Caspian Sea are also in the focus of attention within the framework of COP29.

During the two-day event, participants underscored the significance of the Forum as a strategic platform for achieving the SDGs and the need to intensify regional cooperation and strengthen mutual relations between the ECO member states. At the same time, it was noted that climate change, food and energy security, as well as gender equality and other issues, were key, and possible ways to use the ECO to coordinate strategic multilateral dialogue and political coherence of the implemented measures were discussed.

Within the framework of the Forum, panel sessions facilitated a broad and constructive exchange of views on a range of key thematic areas, including "Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability", "Sustainable Finance, Economic Development and Material Security", "The Role of Family Institutions and Population Growth in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals" and "2026–2035: ECO Vision".

The "Final Document of the First ECO High-Level Forum on Sustainable Development" was adopted at the end of the forum.