Anar Guliyev: Azerbaijan undertakes one of largest reconstruction efforts in region

Azerbaijan has recently been carrying out one of the largest and most comprehensive reconstruction projects in the region, Anar Guliyev, Chairman of the State Committee on Urban Planning and Architecture of Azerbaijan said during the session Cities at the Center of Connectivity: Urban Reconstruction and Regional Cooperation held within the 13th Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku, Report informs.

"Areas once subjected to destruction are being transformed into sustainable, inclusive, and future-oriented urban and rural communities. For nearly thirty years, about 20% of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory remained under occupation. During this period, hundreds of cities, towns, and villages were destroyed. Critical infrastructure was demolished, cultural heritage monuments suffered irreversible damage, and more than one million Azerbaijanis were displaced from their homes.

After the liberation of these territories in 2020, Azerbaijan entered a fundamentally new stage focused on reconstruction, reintegration, and sustainable regional development. The scale of destruction in these areas was unprecedented. More than 900 settlements were damaged, and the entire urban system ceased functioning. Aghdam city, once a vibrant regional hub, became one of the most visible – though not the only – examples of devastation in the liberated territories," Guliyev noted.