FAO to help Azerbaijan improve forest management
By Trend
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will continue supporting the development of forest resources in Azerbaijan, Melek Cakmak, head of the FAO Partnership and Liaison Office in Azerbaijan, told Trend.
She said that the FAO together with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the government of Azerbaijan have launched a project to assess the monitoring of the country’s forest resources.
“The project will make it possible to carry out inventory of Azerbaijan’s forest resources,” she said. “Such a process was last carried out in 1988. It is also planned to strengthen the human resources and technical potential of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources as part of the project.”
She noted that the inventory will allow Azerbaijan to form forest resources policy, and also to implement projects in this field more successfully.
“As part of the project, it is also planned to restore damaged forests in the Gakh and Aghdam districts of Azerbaijan and plant new trees,” she said. “This will make it possible to protect the land, as well as reduce emissions of carbon dioxide.”
Cakmak stressed that the joint work with the population is the most important component of the project.
“We need to attract the population to this work,” she said. “In addition, as part of the program, we plan to support the planting of seedlings. In this sphere alone, we plan to provide jobs for more than 50 people.”
She noted that when planting seedlings, special attention will be paid to growing fruit tree seedlings.
Cakmak said that the project will be mainly financed by the GEF, while the FAO and the Azerbaijani government will provide non-material support to the project.
“The GEF allocated $1.5 million for this project, while the support of the FAO and the Azerbaijani government (provision of labor force and other resources) can be estimated at $1 million and $2-3 million, respectively,” said Cakmak.
Azerbaijan has been a member of the FAO since 1995. The organization’s office in the country has been operating since 2007.
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