SHAMKIR, Azerbaijan, June 19. The State Program for the Development of Agricultural Production and Processing, Fisheries, and Aquaculture in Azerbaijan for 2026–2030 has especially identified several fundamental directions, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Ilhama Gadimova said, Trend's correspondent reports from the event.
She made the remark at a regional consultation on the Gazakh-Tovuz economic region, held in Shamkir to discuss the state program approved by the decree of the President of Azerbaijan dated May 25, 2026.
According to the deputy minister, the main directions include increasing intensive garden areas, increasing wheat productivity, expanding modern irrigation areas, expanding agropark and greenhouse activities, forming small wineries, and increasing intensive livestock farms.
"Besides, the program covers not only production areas, but also supporting measures. Legislative initiatives, institutional reforms, and digitalization are important pillars of this program. It is planned to improve the legislation 'On the agricultural sector', 'On seed production', 'On fisheries', make changes to the subsidy rules and mechanisms for applying discounts to agricultural machinery.
Concurrently, the expansion of the agricultural artificial intelligence system and the development of data-oriented subsystems of the Electronic Agricultural Information System (EAIS) will serve for more flexible and information-based management of the field.
Today, agrarian policy is no longer limited to the work done in the field. Our decisions should be based on data, maps, electronic systems, satellite observations, soil and water balance, and real productivity indicators. Therefore, digitalization is becoming an important tool for both farmers and the state," she explained.
Gadimova pointed out that one of the most important directions of the program is to increase wheat production and increase productivity.
"As many as 22 districts have been identified as target regions for wheat production. These regions provide a large part of the grain produced in the country and have higher irrigated areas, modern irrigation potential, agropark infrastructure, and laser leveling capabilities. Shamkir and Tovuz districts are included in the list of these 22 districts.
It's planned to bring the average yield to 50 centners in the target regions, and to 30 centners in the Damya regions, which also include Aghstafa and Gadabay. In the perspective districts, including the Gazakh district, the yield target is set at 50 centners after 2029," she noted.
The deputy minister said that in order to achieve the targets, it is planned to expand the application of modern irrigation systems, improve technical support, apply laser leveling technology, increase state support for wheat production, and strengthen control over agrotechnical maintenance.
"First, the application of modern irrigation systems will be expanded. Second, technical support will be improved. Third, the application of laser leveling technology will be expanded. Fourth, state support for the development of wheat production will be increased. Fifth, control over agrotechnical maintenance will be strengthened, and necessary land reclamation measures will be implemented. One of the support mechanisms that should be specially noted here is the subsidization of loan interest rates.
It's planned to pay the part of the annual interest rate of loans provided by banks to farmers for the production of annual crops, not exceeding 19 percent, from the state budget. This is an important support in terms of reducing the financial burden of farmers and attracting funds more easily for the crop cycle," she clarified.
She noted that another important support is related to laser leveling.
"For every ton of the product produced by farmers applying laser leveling, it is envisaged to apply an additional product subsidy to both the farmer and the mill for each ton delivered to the mills. This mechanism both encourages the farmer to use the technology and strengthens the relationship between processing enterprises and the producer," Gadimova pointed out.
The deputy minister said that subsidies alone aren't enough to increase productivity in wheat production. Seeds should be selected correctly, soil analysis should be conducted, sowing should be carried out in the optimal period, the fertilization rate should be determined in accordance with the real composition of the soil, irrigation should be carried out on time, and the fight against diseases and pests should not be delayed.
According to her, the next main direction is the expansion of modern irrigation systems.
"The efficient use of water resources is one of the most urgent issues in agriculture today. Climate change, reduced precipitation, and increased demand for water necessitate the transition to more economical and more efficient irrigation technologies," she said.
Gadimova highlighted that the state program has identified the expansion of the application of modern irrigation, increasing the beneficial use of water, and increasing productivity as the main goals. In this direction, the application of pivot, drip, and sprinkler irrigation systems will be expanded.
She said that currently, the areas where modern irrigation systems are installed are 130,000 hectares.
"It is projected that this indicator will reach 300,000 hectares by 2030, of which 88,100 hectares are planned in 22 target districts, and 12,000 hectares in 8 perspective districts," added the official.
