THE FIFTH BAKU INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS

“ENERGY, ECOLOGY, ECONOMY”

21-24 SEPTEMBER 1999

BAKU, AZERBAIJAN REPUBLIC

he address of UNDP Resident Representative, UN Resident Coordinator, Chairman of the Congress International Executive Committee Ercan Murat to participants in the Fifth Baku International Congress “Energy, Ecology, Economy”

In the course of the 20^th Century the interaction between humans and nature could be characterized as constructive human  activities accompanied by destruction of the environment. The progress which we achieved in science and technology led us to believe that humans have an inevitable superiority over nature. People have behaved not as though they are a part of the environment but like its master, treating the natural world like a ruthless conqueror would with inhabitants of an enslaved country. We now realize that this could not last forever.

Through degraded landscapes, polluted seas and air, and vanishing species, nature has awakened us from our misguided dreams by displaying the harsh scars of so-called “progress”. Over the past one hundred years, environmental degradation has increased to the point where it now threatens  human life itself. Today, we are forced to safeguard the remaining natural areas, to prohibit environmental pollution, to prevent deforestation and soil degradation, an to regulate hunting and fishing in order to ensure that species are not harvested in amounts exceeding their natural reproductive rates.

We, the United Nations, represent the will of the international community in securing the sustainable economic, social and cultural development throughout the world. The United Nations Development Programme is mandated to promote sustainable human development, which, as a goal in itself, requires environmental sustainability as one of the necessary components of what is considered to be a “normal” human life. Therefore, the environment has been identified as one of UNDP”s priority areas. Worldwide, UNDP supports an expanding portfolio of projects aimed at improvement of the environment and building capacity in environmental management.   

I am pleased to pay tribute to the efforts of the Azerbaijan Republic in tackling environmental issues of both national and global concern. Azerbaijan is party to many of the major International Conventions on environmental protection, including the Vienna Convention on protection of the Ozone Layer, the Montreal Protocol on Phasing out of Ozone Depleting Substances, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the International Convention to Combat Desertification. Presently, UNDP is implementing a several-million dollar programme on improving the environmental situation in the country, and supporting Azerbaijan Republic in complying with the communities it has made under the International Conventions.  

The Caspian Environment Programme, which unites the efforts of five riparian countries and the international donor community, is designed to preserve the unique Caspian ecosystem and to promote its sustainable development. The fact that the programme Coordination Center has been established in Baku clearly shows  both the openness of Azerbaijan to the International community and the capacity of the country to play a leading role in regional programmes of this kind.

The regularly held Baku Congress  on “Energy, Ecology, Economy”  is another vivid example of the significant interest and concern regarding environmental problems which has been expressed by the scientific community and public of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is rich in energy resources, and it is predicted that the country will soon experience another oil boom, just as it did at the beginning of the Century. However, the economic and social prosperity of Azerbaijan will very much depend on its ability to translate oil revenues into long-lasting development, and to ensure that the delicate balance between humans and the biosphere remains sustainable for many generations to came.