Tomato-main export product of non-oil sector
By Sara Israfilbayova
Azerbaijan is engaged in the efforts to diversify the non-oil economy and increase exports of non-oil products.
The main market in 2017 traditionally remained Russia, importing goods worth $553 million and which is more than a third of the total volume of this sector.
The main export product of the non-oil sector in 2017 was tomatoes, the total volume of purchases on foreign markets amounts to $151.6 million.
A significant part of all year round vegetables grown in Azerbaijan falls on greenhouse complexes.
Interest in vegetables, and especially in Azerbaijani tomatoes, began to increase since 2004, and this undoubtedly affected the economic activities of farms that began to expand the area of vegetable gardens for growing products. The peak year for tomato production became 2008, when the production areas reached 27.212 hectares throughout the country.
Today, the export of tomatoes is the most profitable area of the
non-oil sector. For the first eight months of 2017, it brought $128
million the country, growth of almost 60 percent.
Recently, President IIham Aliyev, opened a new greenhouse in Baku
Agropark, located in Zira settlement, which covers 11 hectares
areas for cultivation of tomatoes. The first phase of this tomato
greenhouse project in Azerbaijan was started by the Dutch
greenhouse construction company, Debets Schalke on December 2016.
Last July, this project was completed and the cultivation
started.
Non-oil export gains momentum
As a whole, following the results of 2017, according to the Export Survey of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication as a result of activities carried out for the development of the non-oil sector, exports of products in these sectors increased by 24 percent, as compared to 2016 and reached monetary value of $1.538 billion.
Among the products of the industry in the leading position is gold - $125.4 million, polyethylene - $75.4 million, electricity - $51 million, aluminum - $42.9 million, methanol - $42.8 million and other goods.
Turkey follows Russian market with $292 million, then comes Switzerland-$143 million, Georgia-$138 million and Italy-$56 million.
In 2017, as many as 1,923 entities were engaged in export operations in the non-oil sector, and the applications received to the portal Azexport.az are a significant help in the search for new markets. So, in 2017, the portal received applications from 74 countries worth $475 million. Five countries with the largest export requests are Russia (18.6 percent), Turkey (7.8 percent), Ukraine (5.9 percent), India (4.5 percent) and the U.S. (4.2 percent).
Azexport.az was created in accordance with the order “On creation of a unified database of goods produced in Azerbaijan Republic”, signed by President Aliyev on 21 September 2016.
Mission of Azexport.az, managed by the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication is to provide information about products of Azerbaijani origin and becoming the beneficial platform for their sales in foreign and domestic markets.
The portal, integrated with the most popular electronic trading platforms makes the products available to potential buyers from anywhere in the world.
Being available in the Azerbaijani, Russian and English languages, it acts as a single digital destination for trade, bringing together and connecting local entrepreneurs, international buyers and international investors. The portal offers fast and secure payment to VISA, Master Card and American Express cards owners.
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