Why Are Billions Not Solving the 'Water Crisis' in Azerbaijan?

Residents of Kərkənc village in the Shamakhi region report paying 35 manats for a single truck of water (such trucks arrive in the village five to six times a month). According to them, the water shortage challenges their livelihoods, orderliness, and agriculture.

"Only 40 families remain. Water is provided once a week, just 120 liters. Should we bathe with it, wash clothes, or drink it? We pray for rain to fill our tanks," one resident told Azadliq Radio, claiming that some who cannot endure these hardships are leaving the village.

Shamakhi is considered a relatively mountainous region of Azerbaijan. If water scarcity is a problem here, what about those in the lowland regions who also suffer from a lack of water? Complaints received by Azadliq Radio and conversations with residents of lowland regions suggest that they too struggle to find water for both drinking and agricultural purposes. A resident of Qalağayın village in the Sabirabad district said, "We couldn't harvest fruit from the trees this year. There's no natural water in the village. The water we buy is used for drinking, technical purposes, and given to the chickens. We don’t know whether to water the trees or drink it ourselves."

The government largely attributes the country's water shortage to global climate changes, as indicated by the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources (MENR), which, in a statement to Turan, cited this as the main cause and emphasized the ongoing reduction of water reserves. Over the past 23 years, Azerbaijan's renewable surface freshwater reserves have decreased by 24%, dropping from 23.4 billion cubic meters in 2000 to 17.8 billion cubic meters in 2023. According to the State Statistics Committee, Azerbaijan’s water reserves make up approximately 15% of the water resources in the South Caucasus.

MENR also reports that several measures are being taken to prevent water losses, including the reconstruction and restoration of irrigation channels, the creation of new drinking water sources, and the construction of new reservoirs to increase water reserves.

These initiatives are outlined in the "National Strategy on Efficient Use of Water Resources," signed by President Aliyev on October 10, which aims to protect water security, enhance sustainability, and establish modern water management systems in Azerbaijan. Millions of manats have been allocated for various sectors over the years, but state agencies are not very transparent about financial matters, raising questions about some projects and figures.

Project/Funding Amount (in manats)

Although local authorities do not disclose all details, in September this year, Smita Misra, a lead expert in water and sanitation services at the World Bank, stated in Baku at a conference on "Transition to Effective Institutions and Programs in the Water Sector to Address Water Security Issues" that Azerbaijan has invested 8 billion manats in the water sector over the past 10 years. She added that 6 billion manats would be needed over the next 10 years.

Transparency aside, many projects are being approved for similar sectors and tasks. For example, projects related to desalinating Caspian Sea water have been implemented over the past 10-15 years. In 2013, a Caspian Sea Water Desalination Complex was built in the village of Khydyrly in the Salyan district. According to official information, water from there is used to irrigate 700 hectares of greenery in the Salyan region and the nurseries under the balance of the “Azerbaijan Greenery and Landscape Construction” joint-stock company.

However, do these projects address the concerns of local residents and small farmers?