BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 1. Urbanization and digitalization are becoming new challenges for Azerbaijan's water resources, the director of the ADB Representative Office in Azerbaijan, Sunniya Durrani-Jamal, said at the Baku Climate Action Week (BCAW2025), Trend reports.
She emphasized that, in addition to agriculture, urbanization and the growth of digital technologies are affecting the country's water resources.
According to Durrani-Jamal, water directly affects food security and energy supply, especially in countries with developed hydropower. However, in her opinion, there are other important aspects: “I highlight two additional pressures on water resources: urbanization and digitalization.”
The ADB director explained that although Azerbaijan's population is relatively small, rapidly growing cities such as Baku place a significant burden on water resources. As for digitalization, the use of artificial intelligence and big data requires large amounts of water to cool servers and equipment.
Sunniya Durrani-Jamal emphasized that solving water supply problems is not only about the quantity of water, but also its quality. “With increasing pollution, whether from plastic or industrial waste, water becomes unusable. Therefore, cooperation at the regional, international, and national levels will be absolutely critical,” Durrani-Jamal said.
The official stressed that water management is not only about quantity but also quality: “With increasing pollution, whether from plastic or industrial waste, water becomes unusable. Therefore, cooperation at the regional, international, and national levels is extremely important.”
According to her, it is necessary not only to address current water issues, but also to plan for future challenges by introducing green technologies and rational water use in both cities and agriculture.