Countries

Overview

Azerbaijan's main humanitarian concern is its vulnerable Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), who are supported by the Government through a monthly cash grant, food subsidies, free utilities and exemptions from taxes and public transport costs.

These measures are expected to last until the IDPs, displaced by the conflict over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, are able to return to their place of origin.

The Government's top priority is to resettle those IDPs still living in temporary shelters in the countryside. To this end, a number of new settlements have been built with resources primarily from Azerbaijan's State Oil Fund, which was established in 2000.

All IDPs living in tent camps and other temporary shelters are expected to be resettled by the end of 2007. Nearly 300,000 of the displaced population continue to rely on humanitarian assistance, including food aid.

WFP Activities

The main cause for food insecurity in rural Azerbaijan is limited access to economic opportunities in both the agricultural and labour markets.

WFP seeks to help the most vulnerable until they gain a firm foothold in the economy. Over the past 12 years, WFP has provided US$100 million in food assistance to IDPs in Azerbaijan.

The current two-year operation, which ends in June 2008, is expected to assist 130,000 beneficiaries with nearly 27,000 metric tons of food at an overall cost of US$16 million. Under the current operation, WFP activities include:

• General Food Assistance to IDP households started operations in 1994 with an emergency operation targeting over half a million IDPs. Gradually a large number of the IDPs moved to the urban areas and WFP shifted its target to assisting IDPs living in rural areas.
• School Meals to increase enrolment rates of primary school children and help stabilise attendance rates of predominantly IDP children as well as local children in areas of IDP concentration. The project, planned for 60,000 people, has been restricted to 12,000 primary school children because of funding constraints. A take-home ration of 15 litres of vegetable oil a year is provided to students, aiming to supplement family incomes, which in turn could offset the costs of enrolment, school supplies and clothing.

This is likely to be the last phase of WFP's food assistance programme in Azerbaijan, and planning is underway to ensure a smooth handover to the Government, which now has the capacity to provide social safety nets for the IDPs.