World Bank reveals priorities on Karabakh's reconstruction

The World Bank (WB) Country Manager for Azerbaijan Sarah Michael has said that the WB is preparing a new framework document for partnership with Azerbaijan and will start discussions with the country soon.

“We will build this strategy based on the document “Azerbaijan 2030: national priorities for socio-economic development,” Report quotes Michael as saying on June 14.

She said this is the WB’s five-year plan for cooperation with Azerbaijan.

“In the next few months, we will determine what points the government [of Azerbaijan] wants to prioritise in the new strategy, both in terms of investment and in terms of knowledge sharing and capacity building. The country has many different priorities, both in terms of human capital development, support for the private sector, and in terms of recovery and reconstruction of Karabakh, including in the sphere of clean energy. So, we have to meet with different partners to know what areas they would like us to focus on,” Michael said.

Commenting on the issue of WB support for the restoration of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, Michael noted that the issue is currently being studied, but it is too early to say anything since the territories must be cleared of landmines.

“The Azerbaijani government wants us to support restoration and reconstruction in Karabakh, and we are ready for it. We believe that there are great opportunities for the integration of these territories into national systems, as well as great opportunities for the development of regional trade and communications. Thus, we will be pleased to work with the government in this direction,” she noted.

Speaking about the new projects, the WB Azerbaijan manager said there are many pending projects that will be rolled out after Baku’s decision about which project should be a priority. According to her, water management projects may be included in the new strategy, but the issue is yet to be discussed.  

A while ago, the WB launched a system diagnostics of the country's economy to develop a new partnership strategy with Azerbaijan. Currently, the bank's operations in Azerbaijan are regulated by the Partnership Framework (CPF), approved in 2015. The CPF is designed for the 2016-2020 financial years, but after reviewing the effectiveness in 2020, it was decided to extend it with the approval of two priority areas.

Azerbaijan has been a WB member since 1992. Over the past 30 years, this financial institution has provided more than $4 billion in loans for more than 50 projects implemented by Azerbaijan.