World Bank to open offices in Azerbaijan

On November 18, Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov met a delegation led by Anna Bjerde, Vice President, Europe and Central Asia, World Bank.

Report informs that the meeting heard that next year will see the 30th anniversary of establishing partnership between Azerbaijan and the World Bank and that many joint successful projects were implemented over this period.

Prime Minister Ali Asadov noted that Azerbaijan was pleased with the cooperation with the World Bank and stressed the importance of strengthening relations.

Anna Bjerde, for her part, said that over the past years, Azerbaijan has changed from a low-income country to a high-income donor country. She also noted the good level of vaccination in Azerbaijan and said that the work in this area is successful. Anna Bjerde stressed that the growth of the Azerbaijani economy in 2021 is a good indicator.

The meeting also focused on the World Bank’s new Country Partnership Framework Document on Azerbaijan in the pipeline, the Bank’s participation in the implementation of Azerbaijan’s “Socio-Economic Development Strategy 2022-2026” and the restoration of liberated territories, the expansion of cooperation between International Finance Corporation under World Bank with Azerbaijan’s private sector, as well as the prospects of the partnership between the Bank and Azerbaijan country in agriculture, digital development, renewable energy, and many other sectors.

To recap, a new agreement was signed between Azerbaijan and the World Bank Group on the establishment and operation of offices in Azerbaijan. The agreement was signed by Azerbaijani Finance Minister Samir Sharifov and World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Anna Bjerde.