President Ilham Aliyev Receives UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed in Baku

Baku, The Gulf Observer: President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Amina Mohammed on May 21 in Baku.

During the meeting, President Aliyev expressed appreciation to the UN leadership for its support in organizing the 13th Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), noting that the Government of Azerbaijan and UN-Habitat worked closely as a unified team to ensure the successful delivery of the event.

He highlighted that WUF13 was the second-largest international event hosted by Azerbaijan in terms of participation after COP29, emphasizing that both events were organized at a high level.

President Aliyev underlined that Azerbaijan maintains effective cooperation with the UN-Habitat and will continue to strengthen its partnership, while actively participating in future sessions of the World Urban Forum.

Amina Mohammed conveyed the greetings of UN Secretary-General António Guterres to the Azerbaijani head of state. President Aliyev expressed gratitude and asked her to relay his regards to the UN chief.

The UN Deputy Secretary-General congratulated Azerbaijan on the successful hosting of WUF13, noting the high level of participation from countries around the world.

She praised the harmonious integration of historical heritage and modern urban development in Baku, achieved through contemporary urban planning standards, stating that it gives the city a distinctive character.

During the meeting, both sides discussed Azerbaijan’s reconstruction and development efforts in its liberated territories, highlighting these projects as a potential model for post-conflict reconstruction in other regions. The importance of sharing Azerbaijan’s experience within the UN framework was also emphasized.

The meeting also recalled that Azerbaijan’s “ASAN Khidmet” public service model has received the UN Public Service Award as well as a special recognition for digital governance innovation. It was noted that the model has been successfully adopted in several countries across Africa and Asia.

Both sides reaffirmed that Azerbaijan, as an active member of the United Nations, has maintained long-standing and productive cooperation with the organization, contributing to the implementation of various UN programmes and initiatives, and has successfully hosted numerous high-level UN-related events.