Background: After a decade of independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the southern Caucasus region — Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan — continues to face economic difficulties and the risk of renewed conflict and internal strife. Specifically, conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed area of Nagorno-Karabakh, and secessionist movements in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and south Ossetia have created more than 900,000 refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Caucasus.

IRD in Azerbaijan: In response to this growing humanitarian crisis and rapid decline in living standards, IRD began operations in this country in 1999. Some highlights of our work include:

• Health Care — Emergency distribution of pharmaceutical and medical supplies, training for medical professionals and construction of medical facilities;
• Emergency Survival Aid — Distributing food parcels, hygiene kits, school kits, blankets, tools and seeds to refugees, internally displaced persons and local vulnerable populations;
• Repatriation and Reintegration — Providing direct assistance to IDPs and refugees through direct food and clothing distributions and income generation opportunities; and
• NGO Capacity Building — Providing small grants and management assistance to local NGOs to help them improve and expand community services.

Programs

• HIV/AIDS Awareness Training
• Essential Medical Commodity Distribution
• Agricultural Commodity Distribution
• Income Generation
• Income Generation Assessment for Internally Displaced Persons

Contact
Shamil Kaliyayev
Country Director

Baku Office:
185 M. Muhtarov Street
Baku, Azerbaijan Az 1065
Phone: 011-994-12-499-1579
Fax: 011-994-12-596-1316
E-mail: smamedova@ird-az.org

Ganja Office:
53 Bagmanlar Street
Ganja, Azerbaijan Az 2016
Phone: 011-994-22-54-36-70
Fax: 011-994-22-56-33-18
E-mail: hgamzayeva@ird-az.org