Over the past 25 years since its founding, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's (SCO)'s cooperation mechanisms have enabled member states to build mutual trust, reach consensus on tough issues and maintain effective cooperation despite their different political systems and cultural backgrounds, said the organization's secretary‑general.
From six founding members to a 27-nation family, the SCO has grown steadily over the past 25 years.
In an interview with China Media Group ahead of the 2026 SCO Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, SCO Secretary‑General Nurlan Yermekbayev said that the organization's success over the years lies in its ability to build trust and effective cooperation among diverse member states.
"Over the past 25 years, the SCO has successfully built a space of mutual trust and formulated a dialogue mechanism based on equality and mutual respect through consultation. We believe that although member states have differences in political systems and economic development priorities, and each has its own unique history, culture and civilization traditions, within a relatively short period of time, these countries with different characteristics and positions have learned to work together and reach consensus on the most complex issues. We believe that this is one of the most significant achievements made through cooperation over the past 25 years," Yermekbayev said.
"Another important achievement is that the SCO has established a distinctive multi-level cooperation mechanism in a wide range of fields. At present, we have 29 cooperation mechanisms in specialized fields, namely the regular meeting mechanism for the heads of various ministries and departments, collectively known as the meetings of heads of sectoral bodies. The heads, experts and senior officials of these ministries and departments meet once every year and every two years. It is precisely at these professional conferences and those of various ministries and departments that all parties formulate cooperation plans in different fields. Ultimately, the effectiveness of the entire organization's work precisely depends on these mechanisms," he said.
Given the central role of these mechanisms, Yermekbayev said the SCO Secretariat has made their efficiency a top priority.
"Therefore, as the main permanent body of the SCO, the Secretariat of the SCO gives primary attention to the efficiency and effectiveness of the work of these professional mechanisms. The work of our entire organization ultimately depends on the efficiency of the professional mechanism," he said.
SCO's mechanisms drive 25 years of effective cooperation: secretary‑general
