Baku, October 19 (AzerTAc). Azerbaijani Government and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) signed loan agreement in Baku on funding of Second Rural Investment Project. The document was signed by Minister of Agriculture Ismat Abbasov and World Bank’s country manager on Azerbaijan Larisa Leshchenko. 
Abbasov noted that cooperation between Azerbaijan and WB started in 1996. WB funded the Farm Privatization Project (FPP) in Azerbaijan. The project was completed in 2001. Then, during 2005-2008s, the Bank started to finance Rural Investment Project (AZRIP) in the country and in 2009 it involved extra funds to the project.
Abbasov said that realization of Second Rural Investment Project aims at access to community-based rural infrastructure, increase the use and broaden economic activity of rural families.
The Minister stressed that new project supports the State Program on Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development (2008-2015), which has several purposes such as to achieve strengthening of entrepreneurship and dynamic development of economy by suing potential of regions, improvement of living standard..
Leshchenko said that the signed project would be successful for Azerbaijan, it would contribute to development of agriculture and rural areas: “‘It will serve improvement of living standard of 1.5 mln people”, she underlined.