The Director of the Agricultural Research Center, Rashad Huseynov, participated in the panel discussion titled “Dialogue for Climate Action: No Water, No Food Security” organized by the Inter-American Institute for Agricultural Cooperation (IICA) within the framework of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Baku.

At the event, which discussed agricultural solutions in the areas of water accessibility, food production and food security, biodiversity, climate change resilience and disaster risk reduction, the Head of the Center spoke about the work done in the field of irrigation water management in Azerbaijan based on the questions addressed to him. He noted that significant state support is provided for the implementation of modern irrigation systems in order to save water, and large-scale measures are being implemented in the areas of efficient use of water resources, reduction of losses, creation of new water sources, improvement of management and other areas.

The director noted that in the country, water reservoirs and irrigation canals are being built at the expense of state funds, outdated systems are being repaired at the expense of the state budget. Also, in recent years, new water reservoirs have been created to meet the increasing demand for water due to climate change, and work is being done to deliver it through covered canals and pipes to save water.

Rashad Huseynov also emphasized that the use of modern water-saving irrigation systems in agriculture is encouraged by the state, and state support is provided for the construction of these systems. Farmers pay only 20 percent of the total amount in advance to build modern irrigation systems, 40 percent is covered by the state, and interest-free loans are provided for the payment of the remaining amount within 5 years.

In addition, subsidies are provided to farmers who produce products using modern irrigation systems.

There were interesting speeches and discussions at the event on water shortage problems, increasing the efficiency of water management in agriculture, etc.