First VP Mehriban Aliyeva attends foundation ceremony for residential complex for IDP families [UPDATE]

By Azernews

By Amina Nazarli

First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva attended a ceremony to lay a foundation stone for a residential complex for IDP families in Lokbatan settlement, Garadagh district, Baku on May 30.

She laid the foundation stone for the complex.

Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the event saying that it is 20 years that more than one million Azerbaijanis are suffering from Armenian military aggression and occupation. This problem is under the attention of the state and the measures implemented since the very beginning of independence represent one of the major directions of the state policy, she added.

The Vice President said that the order to approve the State Program for improving the living conditions of refugees and IDPs was undersigned in 2004. Several supplements were made to the program in 2007 and 2011.

She added that more than 6 billion manats has been allocated to fulfill the measures envisaged in the state program.

Aliyeva recalled that about 100 modern housing complexes have been built in the regions of the country for IDPs and 250,000 internally displaced people have been provided with new housing.

“Over the past 13 years, 400,000 refugees and IDPs were employed. Schools and kindergartens were established in each settlement. Refugees and IDPs are free from paying tuition fees at higher and secondary educational institutions,” she said.

Despite all the measures taken in this field, still some problems remain unresolved, said Mehriban Aliyeva, adding that thousands of families are still residing in the damaged and unsuitable buildings in Baku and Sumgayit.

“This modern apartment complex is a contribution of the private sector to this noble work. I think that this is very good initiative that alongside the state, businessmen and entrepreneurs are also ready to support this issue," she said.

Deputy Prime Minister Ali Hasanov, project manager at Pa?a Inshaat Kamil Aliyev, and IDP from Shusha district Vasila Khalilova made speeches.

Armenia broke out a lengthy war against Azerbaijan laying territorial claims on its South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions.

Due to the ethnic cleansing policy carried out by Armenia and the Armenian occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan, the number of refugees and internally displaced persons hit more than 1.2 million. With a population of over 9.8 million, Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms.

With the growing economic and political situation of the country, the state pays much attention to the most difficult problems once concerning the refugees and IDPs. The state improves the living conditions of refugees and IDPs and it has adopted relevant state programs and legislative acts.