Azernews.Az

By Alimat Aliyeva

Azerbaijan is planning to establish a Geological Park to preserve its geological heritage and promote geotourism, with a particular focus on showcasing the mud volcanoes of the Absheron Peninsula and expanding the country's ecotourism potential.

The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan announced that a meeting of the Geological Park Working Group had been held with the participation of ministry officials and representatives of relevant government agencies.

During the meeting, Aynura Karimova, Deputy Head of the Ministry's Administrative Office, outlined the progress made on the key components of the Geological Park concept.

Participants also discussed preparations for the final version of the concept, the determination of the park's boundaries, the inventory of the designated territory, and the preparation of a nomination dossier in line with international requirements.

According to the ministry, the establishment of the park will help protect Azerbaijan's unique geological heritage, raise the international profile of the Absheron Peninsula's mud volcanoes, and support the development of ecotourism.

The project is also expected to create opportunities for Azerbaijan to join UNESCO's Global Geoparks Network in the future.

The initiative is being implemented under Azerbaijan's Socio-Economic Development Strategy for 2022–2026, approved by a presidential decree dated July 22, 2022.

The Geological Park is planned to cover selected areas featuring mud volcanoes in Baku and across the Absheron Peninsula. The sites were selected with the involvement of international experts.