Azerbaijan, World Bank eye new areas of cooperation

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan and the World Bank (WB) have discussed the implementation of joint projects and new areas of cooperation.

The discussion took place during the meeting between Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov with WB Vice- President for Europe and Central Asia Anna Bjerde on November 17.

During the meeting, the minister noted that Azerbaijan attaches great importance to the partnership with international financial institutions, including the WB. He highly appreciated the bank’s technical assistance and financial support.

Jabbarov stressed that Azerbaijani-WB cooperation in various fields is of particular importance in terms of the application of best practices and the implementation of innovative initiatives in the country.

The parties also discussed measures being taken to diversify Azerbaijan’s economy, develop the non-oil sector, attract investments and further improve the business environment.

In turn, Anna Bjerde noted the fruitful bilateral cooperation and expressed support for economic reforms in Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan joined the WB in 1992. Since then, the bank has financed over 50 projects with total commitments of $4.4 billion. It started economic cooperation in Azerbaijan to help increase the country’s institutional capacity and to build efficient management of oil reserves. The WB has always supported the large-scale reforms carried out in Azerbaijan.