The staff of MIRAS Social Organization in Support of Studying of Cultural Heritage will visit Shamakhi, Agsu and Ismayilli regions in a few days. The purpose of the visit is to hold survey among those working in cultural heritage and tourism infrastructure, as well as people with physical invalidity, also monitoring of hotel, cultural places, historical, architectural, natural and cultural monuments, and hospitals, medical and other facilities from aspects of tourism, archaeology, ecology, ethnography and architecture. Thus, MIRAS Social Organization started to realize project “inclusive tourism perspectives of archaeological monuments and support to invalids’ rehabilitation”. The project is financed by the Council of State Support to Non-Governmental Organizations under the Auspices of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The project aims at growing interest of 500 thousand invalids resided in Azerbaijan to historical and cultural monuments and archaeological excavation sites and museums, other cultural heritage facilities, and their integration to public life; assisting in their becoming active participant of all events occurred in our country as a part of the community; providing opportunity for using totally the potential of citizens of our society with the purpose of implementing “State Program on social defense and rehabilitation of invalids and ill children for 2014”; getting into intercourse with art, considered the most wonderful rehabilitation, creating the circumstance for displaying their capacities and talents. Lately, international events and large Olympiads held subsequently in Azerbaijan cause interest of tourists along with large companies and tourist flow grown in our country. All of these happened parallel with establishment of new tourism-hotel complexes and widening of resort centers. However, is there any due circumstance for fulfillment of inclusive tourism provided for invalid people among tour routes offered by those complexes and tour companies? The project undertook a commitment to study these issues. Within the project it is planned to make statistics and monitoring of facilities with suitable conditions in the area of Shamakhi, Agsu and Ismayilli regions for invalid people; study of this segment of tourism, having importance in the development of non-oil sector in our country and creation of destination centres; recommendations on the management, creation of exemplary inclusive tourism facility in the example of Medieval Agsu Town Archaeological Tourism Complex. First, the archaeological excavation sites in Shamakhi, Agsu and Ismayilly regions will be considered and the infrastructure will be monitored in surrounding areas and will be photographed to this end. The survey will be held with workers and the invalids of the cultural institutions and tourism infrastructures in the mentioned areas. The area potential will be evaluated with participation of tourism experts, architects, experts on invalid rehabilitation and construction and transport from the aspect of inclusive tourism; proposals and recommendations will be prepared. The seminars on the opportunities and perspectives of inclusive tourism for invalids, tourism, culture and medical workers will be held. It is planned to create special exemplary conditions in Medieval Agsu Town Archaeological Tourism Complex to provide the invalids’ getting into our cultural heritage world by using offered services cozily there and their comfortable movement inside that.

According to the monitoring results, it is intended to prepare tour packages to Shamakhi, Agsu and Ismayilli regions on inclusive tourism; to compile instructions in Azerbaijani and English languages; to fulfill in Braille alphabet and voice format for blind people and surdo-translation for deaf and dumb people. In this stage a press conference on the project outcomes will be held, as well as recommendation book on “opportunities and perspectives of inclusive tourism and tour packages will be published.

The project manager is chairman of MIRAS Social Organization, PhD Fariz Khalilli.