Rebuild Karabakh 2024: Focus on the "Great Return" Azerbaijan’s vision for the liberated lands

The traditional Caspian Construction Week has recently kicked off at the Baku Expo Center, featuring the Azerbaijan International Restoration, Reconstruction and Development of Karabakh Exhibition."

It has been nearly four years since the victory in the 44-day war, and in this short period, Azerbaijan has launched a wide-ranging construction effort in the liberated territories. The "Great Construction" in Karabakh and East Zangezur has boosted the production of building materials, attracted local and international contractors, and served as a driving force for the entire construction sector of the country. The growing interest of participants in Rebuild Karabakh 2024 reflects the high level of attention to the development of Karabakh and the construction industry as a whole in the country.

"The ‘Caspian Construction Week’, first organized in 2003, has become one of the most prestigious events in the construction and infrastructure sectors. At this event, companies from various countries become acquainted with the business prospects in the region and establish new opportunities for cooperation," stated Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in his address to the participants of the fourth Rebuild Karabakh exhibition.

"Various projects are showcased during this annual exhibition, and discussions are held on initiatives for the restoration and reconstruction of Karabakh. This year's exhibition is abundant in innovations, both in terms of its content and participants. The exhibition coincides with the ‘Green World Solidarity Year’ as well as the COP29 international event. The “Rebuild Karabakh” exhibition shares a common goal with this prestigious event: cooperation for sustainable development," the president added.

In his address to the forum participants, the head of state highlighted the joint participation of both the public and private sectors in the exhibition, which opens up important prospects for the implementation of new projects and further expansion of business opportunities.

"The cooperation established and discussions held during the exhibition will play a crucial role in promoting the successful rehabilitation experience in Karabakh on a broader scale...I am confident that this exhibition will create significant opportunities for the revival and sustainable development of Karabakh through more beneficial cooperation," the head of state emphasized.

The three-day exhibition focused on the reconstruction, rehabilitation, and development of Karabakh, held as part of the Caspian Construction Week, is organized by Caspian Event Organisers LLC and Iteca Caspian, along with their international partners ICA Events and Caspian Event Management FZ-LLC. This forum takes place alongside the already traditional 29th Azerbaijan International Construction Exhibition BakuBuild-2024, the 16th International Exhibition for Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning, Water Supply, Sanitary and Swimming Pool Baku-2024, and the 12th Caspian International Road Infrastructure and Public Transport Exhibition - Road & Traffic 2024.

This year, all four exhibitions attracted 380 local and foreign companies from 22 countries, with just under half of the booths represented by international participants. The genuine interest of foreign partners in participating in the revival efforts of Azerbaijan's liberated territories is evident from the fact that national stands from Türkiye, Russia, Uzbekistan, Hungary, Germany, and the United Kingdom are represented at the Rebuild Karabakh and BakuBuild exhibitions. This indicates that, alongside private initiatives, there are interests at the state level.

Specifically, more than 20 companies from Uzbekistan are participating in the exhibitions, and this year has seen an increase in specialized companies from China. Thanks to the utilization of the new fourth hall at the Baku Expo Center, the exhibition space will be significantly expanded. For the first time, companies involved in the development and application of artificial intelligence (AI) and high technologies will also participate in the event.

The number of debutants at the construction exhibitions held in Azerbaijan has significantly increased, primarily represented by foreign companies. This clearly demonstrates the desire of global producers of building materials, suppliers of construction services, advanced technology developers, and project and consulting firms to participate as contractors in the multi-billion-dollar contracts in the Karabakh region. This is not surprising when considering the unprecedented scale of the "Great Karabakh Construction" in the Caspian region and the budget allocations designated for reconstruction efforts from 2021 to 2024.

"After the war, the amount to be spent by the end of this year is 19 billion manats [$11.1 billion]. Most of the funds is channelled into infrastructure projects. At the same time, efforts are being made to return former IDPs to their homes, and more than 8,000 former IDPs have already resettled in Karabakh and East Zangezur. Their number will increase every month and every year," stated Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev during the first meeting of the Milli Majlis (parliament) of the seventh convocation held at the end of September.

Moreover, an additional 4 billion manats ($2.3 billion) is planned for the restoration of transportation, energy, utility, residential, and social infrastructure in the Karabakh region by 2025. Private investments are also being attracted, industrial clusters are being established, and new jobs are being created to facilitate the swift return of citizens to the Karabakh and East Zangezur economic regions. Specifically, several tens of thousands of apartments and individual houses are planned to be constructed in the liberated territories by 2027, with the first phase aimed at resettling over 35,000 families of formerly displaced persons. Preparations for the reception of these former displaced persons are actively underway in the Shusha, Zangilan, Fuzuli, Aghdam, and Lachin districts, where large-scale housing construction is being carried out.

As a result, this enormous "construction site" has provided jobs for many domestic housing construction cooperatives (HCCs), as well as contracting, design, consulting, and transportation companies for four years. At the same time, it has stimulated the growth of basic construction material production due to increased government orders. According to data from the State Statistical Committee, in the period from January to August 2024, construction materials worth 908.6 million manats ($534.4 million) were produced in Azerbaijan, which is a 23% increase compared to the same period last year.

Comparable volumes of construction materials, machinery, and equipment are being supplied to Karabakh from abroad, not to mention the substantial capital investments in the contracting works undertaken by companies from Turkey and other friendly countries. This is precisely why guests and participants of Rebuild Karabakh 2024 are extremely interested in negotiations and meetings to expand business partnerships.

From October 15 to 17, the business program of the event at the Baku Expo Center will feature sessions, panel discussions, and B2B and B2G meetings, where experts and specialists in construction will share their experiences, technologies, and know-how while signing new contracts. Planned panel discussions will cover topics such as “Life is back to Aghdam”, “Overview of Restoration, Construction, and Management Services work in 2024” and “The impacts of the COP29 international climate event on the modern construction sector and the development of innovations”, “Innovative eco-building technologies for Green World”, “Horizons of a Green Building in Azerbaijan and the region”, “Finding the right solutions for Green Building”, as well as a seminar on “Cooperation between Türkiye and Azerbaijan in the field of modern construction technologies”.

The forum will also feature thematic corners to engage visitors: for instance, the "Karabakh – Land of Carpet Weaving" corner, which reflects the history and cultural values of Azerbaijan, will showcase Karabakh carpets, and attendees will be treated to a masterclass on the ancient art of Karabakh carpet weaving.