Azerbaijan eyes creating 150,000 jobs in Karabakh Economic Region – official

During the thirty years of occupation, our lands have been subjected to urbicide, ecocide, and total ethnocultural cleansing. In general, 8 cities were completely ruined, and 54 thousand hectares of forests were destroyed, including rare specimens of flora as victims of this ecological terrorism. Out of 67 mosques located in the region, 65 were completely destroyed, and other cultural and historical monuments were either demolished or desecrated.

Emin Huseynov, Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the liberated territories of the Karabakh Economic Region (except Shusha district) made the remarks at a briefing at Zangilan International Airport on the work carried out within the First State Program of the Great Return to the liberated territories and the upcoming plans, Azertag reports.

"Reconstruction work in Zangilan is underway. Mine clearance of the area was the first step in reconstruction. . Excessive contamination of the area by mines is one of the main problems we face when reconstructing liberated territories. Although Armenia has provided Azerbaijan with several maps of minefields, the practical usefulness of these maps is less than 25 per cent. Azerbaijan continues demining operations without the support of other states and international organizations, the liberated territories within the Karabakh Economic Region have been cleared of more than 50,000 mines and other unexploded ordnance," Huseynov said.

He said that at present the general plans of Aghdam and Fuzuli cities in Karabakh economic region are ready. The construction of Hadrut, Tug, Sugovushan, and Talysh cities is nearing completion: "Work in the areas of transport and logistics, energy, water, and telecommunications is underway. To date, we have built 9 highways and two railroads. Of particular note is the grandiose Fuzuli International Airport, which was built in eight months."

Noting that 5 school projects have been implemented in terms of social infrastructure,  Huseynov brought to attention that the construction of two central hospitals will begin in Ahgdam and Fuzuli.

President's Representative stated that the preservation of cultural heritage is one of the key priorities and informed that Juma and Giyasli mosques and Panahali Khan Palace are currently under restoration in Aghdam. New museums will be built in Aghdam and Fuzuli. At the same time, Central Park in the town of Fuzuli and the Aghdam Forest Park are currently at the stage of preparing a detailed design plan.

Listing the main objectives related to reconstruction and development processes, Emin Huseynov said: "Building smart cities and providing our citizens with high living standards is our main goal. It is important to bring innovation to liberated areas, build better infrastructure and support industrial development. At the same time, we strive to achieve maximum energy efficiency by constructing green energy infrastructure."

Huseynov noted that the creation of jobs is one of the main factors ensuring sustainable development: "In general, about 150,000 jobs are planned to be created in the Karabakh Economic Region. We are building the Aghdam Industrial Park on an area of 190 hectares, and here the residents will be provided with all the necessary communications. We already have some residents. They will receive a number of benefits, such as exemption from VAT and customs duties for 10 years".

The Special Representative of the President said that the government is investing in all the necessary irrigation and water management systems to support agricultural activities in the liberated territories: "The main goal by 2026 is to restore the cities of Aghdam and Fuzuli and 32 villages. In addition, three potential tourist destinations - Hadrut, Tug, and Sugovushan - will be developed. In the first stage, one of our main tasks is to resettle about 66,000 former internally displaced persons in their native lands and ensure their safe residence".