(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By Ayya Lmahamad
Since its establishment, the Black Sea Trade and Development
Bank (BSTDB) has provided loans worth €510 million ($538.6m) to the
private sector in Azerbaijan, the country's Finance Minister Samir
Sharifov said.
He made the remarks at the Black Sea Trade and Development
business forum on the role of BSTDB in supporting Azerbaijan's
diversified and innovative economy in a changing world which was
held in Baku as part of the 24th annual meeting of the bank,
Azernews reports.
The minister noted that the BSTDB is actively involved in the
development of the local markets.
Sharifov also noted that measures are being taken to diversify
the country's economy, provide support to entrepreneurs, as well as
provide them with preferential loans. He added that in this regard,
Azerbaijan intends to expand cooperation with the bank.
Reconstruction of liberated lands
Moreover, noting that Azerbaijan is taking practical steps to
ensure peace and cooperation in the South Caucasus, he recalled
that immediately after the end of the Second Karabakh War,
Azerbaijan began restoration and construction work in the liberated
territories with its own financial capabilities.
'Over $3 billion were allocated for the restoration of these
territories over the period from 2021 through 2022,' he said.
The minister expressed the need for the participation of
international organizations and the BSTDB in the process of
reconstruction of Azerbaijan's liberated lands. In this regard, he
invited the bank to support local business projects in Karabakh and
Eastern Zangazur.
'Given the relatively low capital resources of the bank compared
to other international financial institutions, as well as its
specialization in private sector financing, we invite BSTDB to
provide credit support to business projects of local and foreign
entrepreneurs, who will operate in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur,'
he said.
Sharifov stressed that the reintegration of the liberated lands
into the country's economy, the creation of new international and
regional transport-logistic corridors, and the effective use of
these opportunities will bring great benefits not only to
Azerbaijan but also to all the countries in the region and will
give a serious impetus to the regional development.
Logistical and production opportunities
Black Sea Trade and Development Bank President Dmitry Pankin
stated that Azerbaijan should use new logistical and production
opportunities.
'Azerbaijan is a fairly rich state, but we need additional
experience to develop new projects,' he said.
Pankin mentioned that one of the main goals for Azerbaijan is
the diversification of the economy, as the creation of a
competitive economy is a very important task.
Dmitry Pankin's exclusive interview with Azernews ahead of the
event in Baku shed a broader light on the bank's activities and
plans for the future. To get first-hand information, we provide our
readers to read the interview here .
Azerbaijan's economic growth
Speaking at the forum, Azerbaijan's Deputy Economy Minister
Elnur Aliyev stated that the country's economic growth made
significant progress in 2021 and this trend continues in 2022.
He mentioned that Azerbaijan's GDP growth amounted to 7.5
percent over the first four months of the year.
'The main goal for the next year is the development of
Azerbaijan within the framework of national priorities until 2030.
The main priorities are to increase the competitiveness of the
economy, strengthen social justice, better competitive human
capital, restore territories liberated from the Armenian
occupation, and protect the environment,' he said.
The deputy minister added that the implementation of these
priorities plays an important role in the sustainable development
of the country.
Azerbaijani banks - BSTDB cooperation
Elnur Aliyev also stated that the cooperation between
Azerbaijani banks and the BSTDB in various directions in the future
is of great importance. In this regard, he noted that the extensive
investment portfolio of the bank creates great opportunities for
this cooperation.
Noting that the current challenges include the negative impacts
of the pandemic, conflicts in the region, and food security, he
added that as a result of the disruption of the supply chain in the
world, the prices of many products have increased, as well as
inflation.
'All this actualizes the issue of taking countermeasures, which
require the strengthening of cooperation between the public and
private sector, as well as with international financial
institutions,' he said.
Non-oil sector development
Speaking at the panel discussion, Azerbaijan's Export and
Investment Promotion Agency Head Yusif Abdullayev underlined that
the major goal of the ongoing economic reforms in the country is
the development of the non-oil sector.
Noting that investors can take advantage of various initiatives
in Azerbaijan, he mentioned that there are several industrial parks
in the country, which provide many benefits for investors and
entrepreneurs.
'Azerbaijan has a very favorable investment climate, the same
conditions are created for local and foreign investors, and all
obstacles are removed,' he said.
Moreover, Abdullayev added that Azerbaijan has great
opportunities in the agricultural and industrial spheres, along
with large-scale work to diversify the energy sector.
Small and Medium-sized Business Development
Fund
Azerbaijan's Small and Medium Business Development Agency
Chairman Orkhan Mammadov stated that the work is currently underway
on the establishment of the Small and Medium Business Development
Fund, which will expand SMBs' access to financial resources.
Noting that 99.6 percent of enterprises operating in Azerbaijan
are SMBs, he stressed that taking this into account, support for
the innovative development of SMBs is one of the key elements on
the agency's strategic agenda.
Mammadov noted that the main feature of the fund will be its
ability to offer grants and technical assistance.
'The requirements for the minimum value of the project for
investment will be lower than existing ones in the market,' he
said.
He added that the organizational and legal form of the fund will
be OJSC, which will enable to attract local and foreign
investments, as well as funds from the private sector, in addition
to state funds.
'It is also possible to mention the creation of SMB clusters as
an effective organizational and legal model. The Tax Code of
Azerbaijan provides for a number of tax incentives for SMBs cluster
companies and participants. Currently, we are working on finalizing
the normative-legal base of application of this model, he said.
The chairman stated that the formation of SMB clusters will
stimulate more intensive and sustainable economic development and
broader employment opportunities.
'I would also like to emphasize that these business models have
a wide scope of application in the Karabakh reconstruction process.
The digitalization of SMBs and increasing their role in the green
economy are also key elements for economic diversification and
innovation,' he added.
In this regard, he added that the coronavirus pandemic
demonstrated the importance and necessity of digitalization.
'As part of the SMBs digitalization process, the agency focuses
on three key areas: enabling environment, knowledge provision, and
resources. Regarding the enabling environment for digitalization,
we offer several support mechanisms to stimulate innovation and
digitalization of SMBs in Azerbaijan. These are the funding of
domestic market research, grant projects for education, science,
research, and innovation, as well as the provision of startup
certificates that provide tax incentives, allowing new businesses
to channel resources to innovative activities.
'To improve SMBs' access to knowledge, skills, and innovation,
there are existing development centers in more than 20 regions of
Azerbaijan that provide consulting and training services on
creating innovative businesses, as well as act as an incubator for
them. We also ensure the participation of SMBs in experience
exchange programs. By introducing new e-services and platforms, our
goal is to communicate more effectively with SMEs, improve service
quality, and expand digitalization and its reach. Thus, we launched
an e-learning platform that offers e-services to our development
centers. The platform has made knowledge and skill development more
accessible to SMEs during the pandemic,' he said.
Signed agreements
Within the business forum, the Black Sea Trade and Development
Bank signed agreements with Azerbaijan's Rabitabank and
Turanbank.
According to the agreements, the BSTDB granted loans to
Rabitabank in the amount of $10 million and Turanbank in the amount
of $5 million.
The Business Forum, organized by the Export and Investment
Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) with the support of the Ministry of
Economy, focused on 'the role of BSTDB in supporting a diversified
and innovative economy of Azerbaijan in a changing world'.
To recap, the forum discussed issues of economic diversification
and held presentations on the business and investment environment,
and bilateral meetings.
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Ayya Lmahamad is AzerNews' staff journalist, follow her on
Twitter: @AyyaLmahamad
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- Tags:
- Azerbaijan
- Karabakh
- The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank
- Azerbaijan Export and Investments Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO)
- Azerbaijan's Economy Ministry
- Agency for Small and Medium Business Development
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