Desiccation of the Aral Sea, once the fourth-largest inland lake in the world until 1960, with an area of 68.9 thousand square kilometers and water volume 1083 cubic kilometers caused spreading of various diseases such as - anemia, renal and liver failure, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular diseases and respiratory diseases, etc. UN Volunteers are providing assistance to the UN Joint Programme* for the Aral Sea region by giving training for local community volunteers on healthcare issues.
All in all, more than 2,080 healthcare community volunteers were trained in the entire area of Karakalpakstan. This programme not only allowed 14,683 significant meetings between volunteers and residents, but also the successful awareness raising campaigns on promoting the importance of preventing cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, respiratory tract ailments as well as the protection of mother and child in 23,354 families.