Internally Displaced Persons in Azerbaijan : Livelihoods, Services and Intentions

Following the resurgence of conflict along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border regions between September and November 2020, the governments of Azerbaijan and Armenia signed the Trilateral Cease-fire Statement that resolved some aspects of the decades-long conflict. In December 2022, as a follow-up to the Republic of Azerbaijan 2022-2026 Socio-economic Development Strategy, the Government of Azerbaijan launched the State Program on the Great Return to the Liberated Territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan which describes a range of activities to facilitate the reconstruction of parts of the Karabakh region and the progressive return or resettlement of approximately 700,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) originally from Azerbaijan's border regions. Despite the support of the Azerbaijan government and international organizations, significant portions of the IDP population remain in poor living conditions, hampered by a lack of financial resources or essential services, as well as limited access to stable employment and/or high-income professions. For those who wish to do so, returning to the regions that they still consider home could provide an opportunity for IDP families to improve their standard of living and access to long-term professional and financial success