Regional Workshop on Integrated Community Development is being held by the organization of The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. Leyla Mammadova, the chairman of the board of “Agro Procurement and Supply” OJSC made a presentation on the project “AFAQ” – Agro Action of Azerbaijani Women” at the workshop. She spoke about FAO- “Agro Procurement and Supply” OJSC cooperation, agro potential of our country and development directions of agriculture. “FAO, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, is implementing various projects in Azerbaijan as well. These projects aim to educate people working in the field of agriculture, provide consulting services for them, encourage people to work in the agricultural sector, and support small and medium-sized farms. One of the most cooperative agencies of FAO in our country is “Agro Procurement and Supply” OJSC, that I am the head of. We have implemented lots of projects together so far and I believe we will continue to work more closely in the future as well. We are realizing “AFAQ” project together with FAO. The main objective of the project is to support Agro Action of Azerbaijani Women, to encourage women to work in the agricultural sector, and to enhance the social well-being of rural people. Within the frame of the project, women farmers will gain modern knowledge and skills in the field of agriculture, and information about subjects on the access to domestic and foreign markets, access to credit and their efficient use, processing facilities, and etc.

Another project that will be implemented by the organization of FAO and “Agro Procurement and Supply” OJSC is “Local Food Promotion” project. The project aims to support producers on the pre-selected food in the Northwest. Within the frame of the project a number of activities including trainings, seminars, exhibitions, marketing, etc. are planned to be carried out by “Agro Procurement and Supply” OJSC.

FAO also supports the preparation of national export promotion strategies for selected agricultural products in Azerbaijan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan “.

It is noted that the main purpose of the Regional Workshop on Integrated Community Development is to discuss different approaches to local rural development relevant for Europe and Central Asia; disseminate practical experiences among the participating countries and contribute to the establishment of new partnerships among governments, international organizations, and the private sector with interest in local rural development. Representatives of state, international organizations and the private sector, civil society and academia from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Albania, Serbia, Moldova and a number of Balkan countries are taking part at the workshop.

The main topic of discussion is the development perspectives of rural communities and ways to support family farms. According to statistics, Family farmers produce over 80 percent of world’s food. FAO supports various initiatives and projects in European and Central Asian countries to protect biodiversity of rural ecosystems, improve the social well-being of rural populations, and support smallholder farms for more than a decade. Regional Workshop on Integrated Community Development also aims at establishing technical networks between projects conducted in different countries and executive bodies.