Ilham Aliyev attended a ceremony to supply drinking water to Kurdamir city

First the head of state met with representatives of the district public.

Saluting representatives of the district public, President Ilham Aliyev said:

- First of all, I want to sincerely congratulate you on the upcoming Ramadan holiday. I wish you good health and continued success. On the eve of the holiday, we are celebrating the completion of a wonderful project in Kurdamir.

The supply of drinking water to Kurdamir is now a reality. According to my information, water is already supplied to homes. Gradually, this project will grow. Before the end of next year all water and sewage problems of Kurdamir will be fully resolved. Earlier, we built water treatment plants in the villages along the river. Now drinking water is supplied to almost 30 villages. At present, the project of water supply to the city is coming to an end. In short, the water problems of Kurdamir will be fully resolved. This is a great and historic project. The problem of drinking water has haunted people not only in Kurdamir, but also throughout Azerbaijan for many years. As you know, water reserves in Azerbaijan are not particularly large. Our main source is generated outside the country. Projects on water management, rational use of water and, of course, the creation of a modern network are of tremendous importance.

The main thing is that the Azerbaijani government is addressing this problem. Of course, projects related to drinking water and sanitation are of great importance among infrastructure projects. In previous years, we successfully implemented other infrastructure projects. Most of them have now been completed, including the construction of highways. Now the Hajigabul-Kurdamir highway is being expanded. It will become a four-lane road. Gasification projects are being implemented as well. In Kurdamir this process has also become very extensive. Gasification has been provided at the level of nearly 70 per cent. But the gasification of Kurdamir District must be implemented by 100 per cent, i.e. throughout the district. And complete gasification will be ensured.

The construction of rural roads is ongoing. Funds are allocated both from the state budget and from the Contingency Fund of the President. Work is now under way. Roads connecting several villages are built. In the future, extra funds will also be allocated for these projects. The drinking water project, of course, is of particular importance among these projects, because water means life and clean water means healthy life. The Azerbaijani government is doing everything possible to improve public health. In particular, we renovated the Kurdamir city hospital and outpatient clinic and built the Olympic Center in previous years. Now we are celebrating the completion of a drinking water project.

The human factor is high on the agenda in Azerbaijan. I said 10 years ago that we need to turn the "black gold" into human capital. I think that we have managed to achieve what we wanted in this direction over the past years. People’s prosperity and public health are improving. We can see this in the statistics. Life expectancy is increasing. The World Health Organization, the world’s biggest organization dealing with issues of public health, supports and appreciates the reforms ongoing in Azerbaijan in this sphere. We, in turn, do and will do everything possible for people’s comfort. I want to say again that citizens of Azerbaijan are at the heart of our policies.

Of course, over the past 20 years Azerbaijan has been managed in accordance with the principles of a market economy.

Our economy is entirely based on the principles of a market economy. Despite this, a very strong social policy is being pursued.

Observing the events happening in different places now, we can see that if social issues are ignored, great problems emerge. Of course, the market economy is the main condition for the economic development of any country. But sometimes reforms lead to difficulties. In order to prevent these problems and carry out reforms more confidently, there should be a strong social policy. This social policy manifests itself in various forms – schools, hospitals, roads, social facilities, higher wages and pensions, the implementation of infrastructure projects, i.e. all the issues of concern for people should be eliminated.

I believe that recent years have seen tremendous progress in this direction. In the coming years we will continue this work because there is still much to do. We will continue to carry out reforms in the economic sphere and in addressing social issues. There is a great need for reforms. We are not talking only about investment. Investment issues are resolved in Azerbaijan at a high level. At the same time, systemic reforms must be carried out.

We have completed the period of transition. Today Azerbaijan is fully developing on modern foundations – in the political, economic spheres and in addressing social issues. But we must certainly pay attention to the experience of developed countries in this area, particularly in terms of social issues. This experience has both positive and negative aspects. Of course, we must choose the positive aspects and bring our social policies closer to the criteria of developed countries, align them with each other.

We are doing that, and the work carried out in the social sphere in Azerbaijan is highly valued in the world. Azerbaijan did not reverse a single social project even during the financial and economic crisis which has swept the whole world, especially Europe, in the past few years. On the contrary, salaries and pensions are increasing and funds allocated for social investment.

The implementation of such drinking water projects requires large resources. The bulk of the funds is allocated from the state budget. Part of this work is done through loans, but these loans should be repaid by the Azerbaijani state. In other words, these projects are purely social. The investments made in these projects are measured in hundreds of millions, perhaps even billions because we have to remodel and reconstruct the entire water economy of our country. This investment is unrecoverable because state water tariffs in Azerbaijan are very low and it will be impossible to recover the investment made through the funds collected from the population. I want everyone to know this. There are investments that are commercial in nature. But the funds invested in infrastructure projects in Azerbaijan are purely social in nature.

Highways, gas and water projects, rural roads - the government is doing that for a comfortable and normal life of our people.

I am very glad that this project has already been completed in Kurdamir. The development of Kurdamir is constantly in the spotlight. As I noted earlier, in previous years the government also provided its support, implemented various projects and constructed social facilities, including a beautiful Heydar Aliyev Center. It is a center in the true sense of the word. It will conduct various activities. At the same time, work is being done in Kurdamir to create new jobs. Today, I will review a dairy and a livestock-breeding complex. In other words, comprehensive development of the district is already a reality. In the coming years we must maintain this high pace in order to develop Kurdamir even faster for the benefit of the people.

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Speaking on behalf of the residents of Kurdamir, the chairman of the district intelligentsia organization, Sabir Novruzov, thanked the President of Azerbaijan for the attention being paid to the development of the country, including Kurdamir.

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President Ilham Aliyev: Thank you! We still have a lot to do. A lot remains to be done in the future. But we have done a great job in recent years. Azerbaijan is already recognized in the world as a strong state. Our international relations are expanding and the number of our friends is growing. Azerbaijan is a member of the most prestigious international organizations of the world. Very much depends on the position of Azerbaijan in the region. All of these successes have been achieved thanks to the talent and hard work of the Azerbaijani people. The early 1990s were the first years of our independence, and we all remember those days.

At that time the overall development of Azerbaijan was in question. Azerbaijan was practically falling apart. There was civil war. There were no reforms in the economic sphere. The industry was in a completely paralyzed state. At that time, there were very pessimistic thoughts about the future of Azerbaijan in the world and in the country. But the strong will, the reforms and the unity between the government and the people saved Azerbaijan from these disasters. The Heydar Aliyev Center we are opening today shows pictures of those years. Those years, especially 1993, were crucial. The fate of Azerbaijan was at stake. Fortunately, the determination, courage and wisdom of the great leader, and the confidence of the people in him saved Azerbaijan from these disasters, and we have been on the path of development for 20 years.

Today, Azerbaijan is one of a handful of countries on the world map to develop in a very positive way, to move ahead in the international arena, in the region and at home. The people of Azerbaijan live in an atmosphere of security and peace.
Azerbaijan has preserved and promoted stability and public order for 20 years. Stability, peace and security are the basic conditions for the development of any country.

We live in a region which, as you can see, is surrounded by conflicts, clashes and wars. We must and we do protect our country by strong and independent politics. At the same time, the ongoing reforms in the political and economic spheres and the way we are addressing social issues are strengthening our country.

Today Azerbaijan is conducting an absolutely independent policy. This policy is underpinned by the strong will of the Azerbaijani government and a strong economy. The strong economy has been created by us, the people of Azerbaijan.

Today, Azerbaijan has the highest ratings in the world. We are among leading countries of the world and are ranked in 46th placed for the competitiveness of the economy. This is a great achievement.

The improvement and landscaping have created a wonderful atmosphere in the country. I often visit the regions. I have been to Kurdamir District a few times to see the situation. And I can see that each district has a very strong desire for such improvement and development. Districts seem to have entered into a competition with each other, a healthy competition. It makes me very happy. The regions, districts and cities are improving. Kurdamir is not what it used to be. It develops and will become even prettier and more beautiful. I think that the experience of our country is very important for countries in transition.

In any sphere – economic and political reforms, the processes taking place in society, the unity, solidarity, national and religious tolerance – we show an example in many respects. But let me say again that this is not our main goal. Our main goal is to strengthen our country and provide a decent and normal life to our people. Of course, the project we are celebrating today holds a special place among such projects and goals. I am sure that a great job will continue to be done in Kurdamir. We are going to meet with you again, as there will be many more ceremonies. Everything in Azerbaijan, as always, will be fine.