4th Steering Committee meeting of EUWI National Policy Dialogue in Azerbaijan

The First Steering Committee meeting for the NPD on IWRM in Azerbaijan was organized in October 2010. The NPD focuses on the development of a Government strategy for the management of water resources (National  Water  Strategy).    Transboundary water cooperation with neighbouring Georgia, specifically the preparation of a bilateral agreement on the management of shared transboundary waters of the Kura River  supported by an Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC) project, is another important issue on the NPD agenda. The NPD on IWRM in Azerbaijan has been funded by the European Commission (EC) and OSCE. The Government of Finland contributes with expert support to the preparation of the National Water Strategy. During the Second Steering Committee  meeting, in June 2012, a draft of the strategy was adopted as a basis for its further development. 

The NPD in Azerbaijan benefits from the related activities implemented  by UNECE and OECD. The recently completed second UNECE Environmental Performance Review of Azerbaijan  has developed recommendations, which feed into the dialogue. 

In 2011, OECD implemented a project aimed at monitoring performance of water utilities in Azerbaijan. The work helped to improve policy making for WSS by providing good quality data and analysis. Planned OECD activities include pilot projects  on exploring potential transboundary costs and benefits from improved water management, and organization of a regional  conference on water security and economic aspects of IWRM in Azerbaijan.