What is the need, water, or a new agency?

Baku/31.03.23/Turan: The day before, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on improving management in the field of water resources, water management and land reclamation. According to the document, the State Agency of Water Resources of Azerbaijan will be established on the basis of the State Agency of Water Resources under the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

“Azersu” Open Joint Stock Company and “Melioration and Water Management” Open Joint Stock Company will be subordinated to the new department.

Zaur Mikailov, who previously headed JSC “Melioration and Water Management”, was appointed chairman of the new department.

Was there a need for this change?

The former deputy, economist Nazim Beidamirli answers this question in the "Difficult Question" program.

According to him, the government at various times, under the guise of reforms, carried out reorganizations – the unification or fragmentation of state bodies, joint-stock companies, state concerns and companies.

"As a rule, duplicate structures were combined in order to save public funds. Such processes took place mainly before 2010," Beidamirli said. The economist noted that the motives for the decision to create a State Agency for Water Resources, which will be subordinated to “Azersu” and “Melioration and Water Management”, are not yet clear to him.

Referring to the public administration system of Azerbaijan, Beidamirli said: "We have repeatedly talked about the need to reorganize the Cabinet of Ministers in order to bring it into a state that meets modern socio-economic requirements.

"It should be done at least as in neighboring countries, as in Georgia, for example. No country has about 40 ministries and committees, government agencies and companies, like in our country.  In all civilized countries, governments consist of 10-12 ministries.

In foreign countries, the Cabinet of Ministers consists of the Prime Minister and members of the Government - ministers. Unlike  in our country, there are no positions of deputy prime ministers in the staffing of these countries. Deputy Prime Ministers act informally, on a voluntary basis. There are only two of them and these are the persons who head the existing ministries," the expert said.

In his opinion, the structure of the Cabinet of Ministers existing  in Azerbaijan is  devoid of mobility.

"In Azerbaijan, the merger of different ministries, the creation of monstrous super-ministries, consolidation is practiced. As a rule, it also deprives the organization of mobility, reduces its efficiency. Therefore, I do not expect the newly minted State Agency to achieve much success," the economist says.--0--