World Bank to finance new projects in Azerbaijan
By Sara Rajabova
The World Bank will allocate additional financing for two projects in Azerbaijan.
The WB Board of Executive Directors approved on July 9 two International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loans to the Azerbaijan, a message by the Bank said.
Loans in the amount of $100 and 50 million will be directed to projects he Judicial Services and Smart Infrastructure Project (JSSIP) and Azerbaijan Rural Investment Project (AzRIP) respectively.
The first loan, in the amount of $100 million, will support the Judicial Services and Smart Infrastructure Project (JSSIP). This project builds on the current Judicial Modernization Project, and aims at improved access, transparency, and efficiency of selected judicial services.
JSSIP constitutes a second phase of World Bank support for Azerbaijan's efforts to improve the performance of its justice sector and strengthen access to justice, especially for the vulnerable. The project is designed to sustain Azerbaijan's justice sector modernization by expanding access, strengthening due process, and ensuring transparency in the delivery of key justice and legal services.
World Bank Director for South Caucasus, Henry Kerali said modernization of Azerbaijan's judiciary can play a vital role in the country's future economic development.
"The project will support this transformative process by supporting judicial infrastructure; introducing e-services; establishing more effective dispute resolution and business inspections systems; increasing transparency of judiciary; and improving legal aid services to citizens, particularly to vulnerable segments of the population, such as internally displaced persons and residents of remote regions. We hope the project will promote effectiveness of and public confidence in the judiciary," Kerali said.
The Project has four components that will upgrade e-justice services, such as case filing and case management systems; improving business registry and inspections, and enforcement of judicial decisions; improving information technology capabilities of the justice sector; and expansion and modernization of judicial infrastructure.
The second loan, in the amount of $50 million, is an additional financing for the ongoing Azerbaijan Rural Investment Project (AzRIP), which helps rural communities in Azerbaijan improve their well-being by supporting small-scale infrastructure and income-generating activities.
"Almost half of Azerbaijan's population lives in rural areas where infrastructure needs - such as community roads, irrigation and drainage, potable water, and health and education facilities - are still significant. The Azerbaijan Rural Investment Project brings local communities together, and directly involves them in identification, implementation, and monitoring of project interventions" the report reads.
Implementation of the original project has, so far, benefited over 1.5 million people in more than 600 communities. Micro-projects, supported by AzRIP, helped improve over 2,000 km of intra-community roads, which significantly reduced travel times to schools and markets. Improvements in the local irrigation and drainage systems have positively affected over 700,000 farmers whose average productivity has risen by 30 percent.
Kerali said AzRIP has empowered rural people to take agreed decisions in identifying and addressing priority development needs of their communities.
He noted that it has demonstrated a new and highly successful approach to public service delivery in Azerbaijan.
"The additional financing will allow this operation to expand into new regions that have high concentrations of internally displaced persons in order to reduce their vulnerability and foster growth," Kerali said.
The additional financing will support 670 more infrastructure micro-projects. It will also provide technical assistance for the identification and preparation of income-generating activities that will then be supported through AzRIP's grant facilities.
The current World Bank investment portfolio in Azerbaijan includes 17 projects. Since joining the World Bank in 1992, commitments to the country have totaled over $3 billion for 54 projects.