Azerbaijani minister: Smart village being built based on best international practices

The first point of the Great Return to the liberated Azerbaijani territories - the ‘smart village’ is being built taking into account advanced international experience, Minister of Agriculture Inam Karimov said at the international conference “Innovative Approach to Urban and Rural Development: Smart Cities and Villages” in Baku, Report informs.

“The rapid process of urbanization taking place around the world is increasing the pace of urban development and driving the development of new technologies. The COVID-19 pandemic has raised the question of how vital digital services are around the world. The role of digitalization in ensuring sustainability, especially in education and healthcare has been revealed. For this reason, worldwide interest in models to improve the quality of public services has increased. One of the main promoted concepts for sustainable development in rural areas is the creation of smart villages, he said.

According to the minister, the First State Program for the Great Return to the Liberated Territories, approved by President Ilham Aliyev on November 16, reflects comprehensive restoration and construction work: “When developing the program, progressive international experience, development strategies, and the socio-economic potential of the liberated territories and modern challenges of the global economy were taken into account. It was against the backdrop of these approaches that the idea of ​​a ‘smart village’ arose, and the concept is already being implemented in practice.”

He noted that the ‘smart village’ in Zangilan district is the first in the CIS, but differs from other ‘smart villages’ existing in the world: “Digitalization, the use of alternative energy sources, the transfer of public services online, environmental protection, waste management are being integrated into ‘smart village.’ Therefore, the ‘smart village’ in Agali can be considered throughout the world as an Azerbaijani model.”