Azernews.Az

Nazrin Abdul

Read more

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is prepared to assist Azerbaijan in managing its water resources and modernizing irrigation infrastructure, Azernews reports.

Sunniya Durrani-Jamal, Director of the ADB’s Azerbaijan Representative Office, made the announcement during her speech at the Baku Climate Action Week.

She emphasized that Azerbaijan can rely on ADB’s support in implementing its national water resource strategy, upgrading irrigation systems, and applying artificial intelligence technologies for effective data management.

Durrani-Jamal highlighted that for countries located downstream along rivers, a key starting point in securing water resources is risk assessment based on satellite monitoring. This approach allows for identifying water availability across various geographic zones and detecting “hotspots” — areas with a high risk of floods, droughts, or water scarcity.

She also noted that water issues are sometimes caused not only by climate factors but also by political decisions. For instance, in South Asia, existing subsidy policies have led to the overexploitation of groundwater resources, underscoring the need for detailed diagnostics and policy adjustments.