A/HRC/43/44/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Hilal Elver, conducted an official visit to Azerbaijan from 1 to 11 October 2019 at the invitation of the Government. The Special Rapporteur’s objective was to assess the enjoyment of the right to adequate food in the country, to engage in a constructive dialogue with all stakeholders and provide useful recommendations to the Government and others. She would like to express her gratitude to the Government for the invitation to visit the country and for engaging with her in an open and constructive manner. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was key in coordinating the preparation of the official programme and organizing all the meetings requested. 2. During her visit, the Special Rapporteur held meetings with a range of Government representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Population, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources the Ministry of Healthcare, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance, the National Coordination Council for Sustainable Development, the State Agency for Agriculture Credit and Development, the State Agency for Agricultural Services, the State Agency for Food Safety, the State Centre for Agriculture Studies, the State Agriculture Trade Company, the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs, the State Committee for the Affairs of Refugees and internally displaced persons and the Council of State Support for Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs). 3. The Special Rapporteur also met with members of the Agriculture Policy Committee of the Milli Mejlis (the parliament) and the head of the Ombudsman’s Office and her team. In Baku, she visited the juvenile correctional facility and women’s prison No, 4, as well as public orphanage No. 11 in Bilgah and a settlement for internally displaced persons. 4. The Special Rapporteur had the opportunity to visit Guba region in the north-east of the country and Ganja region in the west. In Guba, she held meetings with local government representatives, met with the Director of the Scientific Research Centre for Tea and Fruit-Growing and visited an Azerbaijan Business Assistance and Development pilot centre, which provides support to small-scale farmers for processing, marketing and selling their products. She also met with members of rural communities and smallholder farmers. 5. In Ganja, the Special Rapporteur met with the Deputy Rector of the State Agricultural University, the Ganja Agrobusiness Association and members of rural communities and farmers to look into structural agricultural issues affecting the region. 6. Throughout the visit, the Special Rapporteur also met with representatives of the United Nations system, the World Bank, the international donor community and representatives of civil society organizations. 7. The Special Rapporteur is grateful to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Azerbaijan, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and other United Nations colleagues for their invaluable support both before and during the visit. She would also like to express her deepest gratitude to all of those who took the time to meet with her and who shared their personal experiences and knowledge. Their personal testimonies and contributions were vital to the success of the visit. II. General situation 8. Overall, there is no food security problem in Azerbaijan in terms of availability of food, as the country has seen a profound economic and social transformation since gaining independence in 1991. Having transitioned from a Soviet system to a market-based economy, Azerbaijan has become an upper-middle-income country.1 The country has great potential to be self-sufficient with its wide range of natural resources and a good climate, 1 World Bank data, 2019, available from https://data.worldbank.org/?locations=AZ-XT. 3