Technical Assistance Project for the implementation of the Support to Rural and Regional Development (SRRD)
start date: 16/01/2016
period: 33 months
The Project will demonstrate, adapt and implement the so-called participative approach, which has been proven for many decades as the most sustainable approach to rural and regional development in the European Union. The project aims to support small farmers to become more competitive on the national and global market by creating or improving value chains as a tool of connecting producers, traders, processing and packaging, marketing and exporters with retail and consumers. As results are expected: the creation of new jobs, developing selected sectors and more competitive products for the Azerbaijan and the global market.
The Support to Rural and Regional Development Project (SRRDP) is funded from the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument (Programme). It is implemented by the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan assisted by a consortium of consulting firms led by International Development Ireland (IDI) Ltd. This Technical Assistance is one of presently four EU-funded projects to support rural and regional development in Azerbaijan.
The first event organised in the frame of the project was a conference taken place on the 2nd of May, 2017 in Khachmaz province (Guba-Khachmaz economic region). The Deputy Minister of Economy, Mr. Sahib Mammadov, responsible for regional development opened the conferences, who expressed the importance of the project for the economic and sustainable development of regions and economic reform in Azerbaijan. The EU Delegation to Azerbaijan was represented by Mr. Jeroen Willems, Head of Operations. At the conference the Project presented its approach, which reflected by the topic of the conference ‘Participative Development for Sustainable Economic Growth’.
A direct beneficiary and main partner for cooperation is the Department of Development of Regions and State Programmes of the Ministry of Economy with its Central Office in Baku and the Regional Branch-Offices in the selected pilot economic regions – Guba-Khachmaz (Khachmaz), Daghlig Shirvan (Shamakhi) and Aran (Goychay) and other stakeholders as the Ministry of Agriculture, Executive Committees in the project regions and member of the respective value chains.
The TA project Support to Rural and Regional Development Programme (SRRDP) in Azerbaijan organized for Ministry of Economy staff for a group of 6 staff of the Department of Development of Regions and selected stakeholders (Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Economy of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, regional and local authorities) a study tour to Croatia from September 24th to 29th, 2017. The aim of this study tour was to familiarise with good practices in the implementation of complex rural and regional development programmes operating through different projects as these are implemented in the European Union (See attached short information on the study visit in pdf.)
Contact: Stefan Rosenow, Team Leader, E s.rosenow ( a ) idi.ie, T +994 12 493 51 37