Central Asia Sees Sharp Jump In Air Pollution In 2025

Subheadline: Tajikistan and Uzbekistan rank among the world’s most polluted countries as regional air quality worsens; Azerbaijan is the lone Caucasus bright spot

Central Asian countries recorded substantial rises in air contamination last year, with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan landing among the globe’s most polluted nations, a new Swiss analysis shows. The IQAir World Air Quality Report for 2025 places Tajikistan near the top of the list and notes that every state in the region experienced year-over-year deterioration, while Azerbaijan was the only country in the Caucasus to register an improvement.

Tajikistan’s annual average concentration of fine particles reached 57.3 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3), roughly eleven and a half times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended limit, the report found. That level left Tajikistan third worst worldwide, behind Pakistan and Bangladesh, and marked the largest jump in the region after rising from 46.3 µg/m3 in 2024 to 57.3 µg/m3 last year.

Uzbekistan climbed into the global top 10 for poorest air in 2025, with an average PM2.5 level of 38.1 µg/m3—about seven and a half times the WHO guideline. Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan placed 19th and 29th, respectively. Turkmenistan did not appear in the latest rankings because IQAir said reliable monitoring data were not available. The report also highlighted two Central Asian cities among the worst urban hotspots: Karaganda in Kazakhstan and Ferghana in Uzbekistan ranked in the mid-20s and around 30 on the list of most polluted cities.

PM2.5 refers to particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less—small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs. These particles come from vehicle emissions, heavy industrial output, power plants, agricultural burning, construction dust and the burning of coal or wood. Natural events such as dust storms and large-scale wildfires also inject fine particles into the atmosphere and drove pollution spikes in several parts of the world last year.

In the Caucasus, Azerbaijan recorded a modest improvement, slipping from 49th to 59th in the rankings. Armenia fared worst in that subregion, with an annual mean of 26.9 µg/m3 that placed it 24th globally, while Georgia ranked 56th. “Seasonal heating, outdated industrial equipment and gaps in emissions monitoring all play a role,” said a regional air quality specialist who reviewed the report. “But cross-border smoke from wildfires and dust transport can quickly undo local gains.”

IQAir based the 2025 report on measurements from 9,446 cities across 143 countries, regions and territories, and concluded that global air quality worsened overall. The organization pointed to a surge in biomass burning—wildfires amplified by climate change—and estimated roughly 1,380 megatons of carbon were released worldwide from such fires in 2025. Only about one in seven cities surveyed met or exceeded WHO air-quality recommendations, down from roughly one in six the year before. The most polluted urban centers remained concentrated in Pakistan, India and China, with a few Central Asian cities standing out as alarming exceptions.

Experts say the findings underscore an urgent need for expanded monitoring, cleaner fuels and tighter emissions controls. “Reducing exposure will take a mix of policy measures and investment in cleaner energy and transport,” the specialist said. “Without that, these trends are likely to continue, and public health will suffer.”