BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 7
Trend:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) is going to support private sector development in Azerbaijan, focusing on capacity development of SMEs in the sectors agriculture, tourism, logistic and transport, GIZ told Trend.
GIZ noted that currently there are several projects being implemented in the South Caucasus, including PSD TVET SC Programme support to the Logistics and Transport, Sustainable Urban Mobility in the SC (Mobility4Cities) Programme support to Transport sector, PSD TVET SC Programme support to Agricultural sector and ECOserve Programme support ton Agricultural Sector.
Thus, Private Sector Development and Vocational Education and Training programme in the South Caucasus (PSD TVET SC) commissioned by German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) supported Baku Transport Training and Educational Center under the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan with computer and video equipment of two rooms for developing and organizing distance learning training offers.
With these two rooms in the Transport Training and Educational Center the private sector companies in Logistics and Transport will have an opportunity to receive new training programs and additionally able to participate in distant learning. The trainees of Transport Training and Educational Center will be trained on driving, features of work and rest regime, as well as on normative legal acts regulating cargo transportation by road. These sessions will help small and medium enterprises in Logistics and Transport to qualify their expertise, learn on job and be competitive in the field of their workm” the official noted.
The Transport Training and Educational Center is also involved in special advanced training for drivers carrying out national and international road haulage and passenger transport as well as in public road transport.
“The Center provides services to improve transport efficiency and safety besides Baku in four regional branches: Ganja; Shirvan; Lankaran and Bilasuvar,” the GIZ official said.
In turn, the PSD TVET programme is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) for the period of 2017-2023. In Azerbaijan one of the PSD TVET SC programme objectives is to improve conditions for sustainable economic growth with a focus on employment impact and integration of vocational education and training (VET) by introducing dual-like VET with active engagement of the private sector into practical training of students, by developing the new VET occupations, providing capacity building to VET management and teaching staff, in-company instructors, by equipping training facilities like the Transport Training and Educational Center in Baku.
Furthermore, the regional program ‘Sustainable Urban Mobility in the South Caucasus’ (Mobility4Cities), funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by GIZ, supports state and city administrations to develop transport systems in the frame of a participatory, sustainable and integrated urban mobility. Mobility4Cities has a strong focus on supporting the Georgian cities Tbilisi and Batumi in the further development of their urban mobility. Due to its scope, the programme focuses on mobility in the cities, including passenger transportation and does not provide comprehensive technical assistance to Azerbaijan.
However, the official added, Mobility4Cities promotes regional cooperation among South Caucasian countries and/or cities. In this respect, the programme orients its contribution on the partners’ requests. The programme offers expertise from Germany and other European countries aiming to provide knowledge and experiences on citizen-oriented, climate friendly urban mobility. Mobility4Cities offered participation in the following online events to the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Baku Transport Agency and Municipality of Sumgait:
- Introduction of Onboarding Materials for Transport planners and disseminated the materials among the partners in paper and digital in October 2021
- Workshop on Intelligent Transport Systems in September 2021. This event was organized by Mobility4Cities in close cooperation with the GIZ regional programme ‘Good Governance for Local Development’.
Transport and Climate Change Week (TCCW). This event was organized by ‘TRANSfer’, a project implemented by GIZ and funded by the International Climate Initiative of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety.
‘Covid-19 and Urban Mobility’ in July 2021.This event was organized by ‘Connective Cities’ - a cooperation project of the Association of German Cities (Deutscher Städtetag) with GIZ and the Service Agency Communities in One World of Engagement Global.
In turn, the PSD TVET programme in agricultural sector is implementing interventions to improve the quality of advisory services for MSMEs. Program closely worked with State Agrarian Development Centers (DAIM) in Shamakhi, Salyan and Ismayilli, procured necessary equipment for vine-growing as well as involved local experts to build the capacities of selected DAIM advisors and increase productivity of selected farmers by introducing environmentally sustainable cultivation measures.
“Currently, program is also supporting selected vegetable growers in Barda and Goranboy districts. Recently, in partnership with Agrarian Innovation Center under Ministry of Agriculture GIZ is designing a new program which is aimed at building capacities of startups and entrepreneurs in agricultural sector. Team of local and international experts will support the partner in launching comprehensive training package which will help innovative entrepreneurs and startups in transforming their business idea into full-fledge product,” the official said.
Within the framework of ECOserve Programme, GIZ supports the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the development of Agri-environmental Indicators’ Monitoring System (AEIMS). AEIMS is designed to evaluate trends of natural resource use in agricultural production and the quality of ecosystem services and to monitor the negative impact of agricultural production on environment thus supporting the sustainability of agriculture, the GIZ official added.
In the official’s words, the web-based AEIMS covers six pilot agri-environmental indicators: i) consumption of mineral fertilizers; ii) consumption of pesticides, iii) irrigation, iv) water abstraction in agriculture, v) water quality- contamination (N, P), and vi) pasture degradation.
AEIMS allows to track the entire process associated with each indicator, including physical data entry, processing and transmission to stakeholders, reporting, verification and monitoring of the accuracy of the tracking system related to measurements, data quality, information exchange, visualization and mapping of data by use of GIS tools.
The tracked indicator shall support the decision-making process by users, based on the observed trends in physical changes of the same indicator.
In addition, the official said, within the framework of ECOserve Programme currently developing a GIS methodology under the title “Demand Analysis of Water Resources for Sustainable Agriculture in Azerbaijan”. This methodology is being developed for the first time in Azerbaijan and is related to the analysis of irrigation needs of agricultural areas. The main goal is to develop forecasts for irrigation plans and to expand sustainable agriculture.
In order to deepen the theme of "Green Recovery" in the South Caucasus, as well as in Azerbaijan, and to attract a wider audience, the ECOserve program organized an innovation competition for Green Recovery in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture. Within this competition, 3 best ideas were selected and projects have already started. These projects are as follows:
1 - Climate Independent Smart Agriculture
2 - Organization of digital access of farmers to professional counseling centers
3 – Development of Smart Irrigation Systems
“In addition to that GIZ will continue to support various activities in the field of improving Good Governance, Gender Equality and Support to vulnerable groups. Furthermore, GIZ is going to support private sector development in Azerbaijan, focusing on capacity development of SMEs in the sectors agriculture, tourism, logistic and transport,” the official added.
Introduction of dual-like approach to vocational education and training (VET) in the target occupations in Logistics and transport sector, based on the German dual system will continue to be a focus of GIZ support to the partners in Azerbaijan with active engagement of the private sector into practical training of students, support in establishing coordination mechanism between VET schools and employers, providing capacity building to VET management and teaching staff, in-company instructors, the official concluded.