Ilham Aliyev attended the opening ceremony of a new drinking water line laid to the city of Yardimli

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has attended a ceremony in the Youth Park to mark the construction of a new drinking water line laid to the city of Yardimli.

First, the head of state was informed about the work carried out in the park. It was noted that recreation areas, broad gardensand a modern fountain have been set up in the park.

Then, President Ilham Aliyev met with representatives of the district public.

After welcoming the participants of the ceremony, President Ilham Aliyev said:

- I am very happy to be visitingYardimli again. This is my third visit to Yardimli as President. On my way here I was reminded of my first visit. Then, in 2005, we celebrated the reconstruction of the Masalli-Yardimli road. At the time it was a big project, because the previous road was not in very good condition. A new road was built. Then, in 2006, we celebrated the supply of natural gas to Yardimli. It was also a historic day. As was the case in Soviet times, natural gas was not supplied here. Gas lines were laid then. Today, according to my information, most of Yardimlicity is supplied with gas. Gas lines have been laid to several villages. In the future, of course, gasification will be carried out completely. And today we are gathered to celebrate the realization of another important project – thesupply of drinking water to Yardimli.

So, just have a look – this history is an indicator in itself. The road, gas, drinking water – this is life. Clean drinking water means a healthy life. According to my information, all the lines will be laid by the end of this year. Beginning from next year, the problem of drinking water in the city of Yardimli will be fully resolved. In addition, local executive authorities are busy laying water lines to villages. This is also a great initiative. I support and welcome that. We need to make sure that major infrastructure projects are implemented. At the same time, we will celebrate the opening of a rural road today. Work has also begun on the construction of new transmission lines. When strong winds blow in Yardimli, the old supports fall downand power supply is interrupted. We are now installing new and solid supports, so this problem will soon be resolved as well.

All of these major projects are implemented to ensure that people live comfortably. These initiatives, I am sure, are highly regarded by the people because the key infrastructure issues facing the district are settled in a short time. Of course, there is a lot to do in the future. We must continue all this work. In particular, we should take even more important measures to promote entrepreneurshipin the coming years. Entrepreneurship is growing fast throughout the country. New agricultural enterprises are emerging. I believe that further steps must also be taken in this directionin Yardimli. Villagers should be provided with financial assistance, so that they could engage in business on an even larger scale and with greater benefit.

A drinking water project is quite symbolic. Above all, it demonstrates the power of the Azerbaijani state. On the other hand, it shows the nature of public policies in Azerbaijan. Citizens of Azerbaijan are at the center of our policy. Drinking water is crucial to human health. Therefore, the supply of clean drinking water to Yardimliis of particular importance. Yardimli is a mountain district. As is the case elsewhere, we must and we do implement all the infrastructural projects here. As I have mentioned, this is confirmed by the history of the last seven or eight years –roads, electricity, gas, water and, of course, landscaping of the district. A lot has also been done in this respect. Yardimli is developing. Beautiful buildings are under construction. Today we celebrated the opening of the Heydar Aliyev Center. During my previous visits we opened schools and kindergartens. There is a need for that now. This work will be done in the future too.

I heartily congratulate you on this wonderful event. I wish you good health. In the future we will have a lot of meetings like this, because various other projects will be implemented in Yardimli. We will get together for all the opening ceremonies.

RESIDENTS: Inshallah.

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District resident Feyruz Sultanov expressed his gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for the care and attention being paid to the development of Yardimli.

Then, President Ilham Aliyev reviewed the stands describing the technical parameters of water supply and sewage systems of Yardimli District and the master plan of the city’s water supply system.

Informing the head of state, the chairman of the "Land Reclamation and Water Management of the Republic of Azerbaijan" Open Joint Stock Company,Ahmad Ahmadzadeh,said that the first phase of the project envisaged the construction of the main line supplying drinking water to the district center and a D300-400-mm sewage collector. The rest of the work is scheduled for completion in 2014. The VilashRiver flowing through the territory of Yardimli District is to be usedfor the provision of drinking water. The projectprovides for continuous and round-the-clock supply of the city with drinking water in the volume of 150 liters per capita.

President Ilham Aliyev launched the facility symbolizing the supply of drinking to Yardimli District.