BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 8. The UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is working to establish a unified monitoring system and database for the five Caspian littoral countries, UNOPS Multi-Country Director Simonetta Siligato told Trend.
She made the remark on the sidelines of Baku Climate Action Week 2026, she said that addressing changes in the Caspian Sea level requires joint efforts and cannot be achieved through actions by a single country alone.
“I do not think there is any action that can be taken by only one country. My recommendation has always been to look beyond borders. There are five Caspian littoral states, and each country carries out numerous activities related to the use of water resources. Therefore, it is very important to communicate with each other, hold discussions, and share data and information in order to develop a common approach,” Siligato said.
The UNOPS official also spoke about projects being implemented in Azerbaijan aimed at protecting the Caspian Sea. “The project we are currently implementing on the Caspian Sea is carried out in partnership with the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which provides financing, and the UN Environment Programme,” she said.
According to Siligato, one of the main objectives of the project is to support the development of a unified monitoring system that can be applied across the five Caspian littoral countries. “We are providing support only to three countries — Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. However, Russia and Iran are also parties to the Tehran Convention and are part of communication within this framework. We are working together to create a monitoring system that can be used jointly and a database that can be shared. This will allow us to take a coordinated approach to planning future activities,” she noted.
Siligato emphasized that implementing Caspian protection measures independently by individual countries could result in higher costs and reduce the overall effectiveness of efforts. “If each country does this independently, first of all, it will be more expensive. In addition, the impact will be smaller. Unless action is taken across the Caspian Sea as a whole, the effect will not be significant enough,” the UNOPS multicountry director said.
She also highlighted Azerbaijan’s role in regional cooperation aimed at protecting the Caspian Sea. “Azerbaijan’s role is 100 percent essential and is as important as the role of all other countries. I believe that holding events such as Baku Climate Action Week, as well as other regional conferences that Azerbaijan takes very seriously, are among the most important steps at this stage,” Siligato said.
According to her, maintaining communication among stakeholders and bringing countries together are key to strengthening regional cooperation. “Continuing these connections, bringing the parties together and actively demonstrating that cooperation and joint action are the right path forward are among the most important issues,” Siligato added.
