Deputy Minister: Industrial parks register 25 residents
By Sara Israfilbayova
Event entitled “Opportunities of cooperation between international financial institutions and residents of industrial parks and neighborhoods” kicked off on December 6 in Baku.
Addressing the event, Azerbaijani Deputy Economy Minister Niyazi Safarov said that some 25 residents have already been registered in Azerbaijan's industrial parks, adding that some of these residents have already begun to work, while others are working on the establishment of enterprises.
Safarov also reminded that industrial districts are being created in the country, along with industrial parks. “The work in the pilot Neftchala Industrial Zone has been completed, construction work in the Masalli and Hajigabul industrial districts has been completed, and the foundation of the new Sabirabad industrial district was laid recently.”
Today, all residents of industrial parks, high-tech parks, agro parks are exempted from property tax, land tax, profit tax and VAT on imported equipment for seven years.
At present, five industrial parks have been created in Azerbaijan (Sumgait Chemical Industrial Park, Balakhani, Garadagh, Mingachevir and Pirallahi Industrial Parks) and three industrial zones (Neftchala, Hajigabul and Masalli Industrial Zones).
A number of agro-parks and parks of high technologies are also functioning in Azerbaijan. Nevertheless, the government is constantly exploring the possibility of creating new industrial parks or zones in different regions of the country.
Further, the deputy minister stressed that since the beginning of the year, over 200 investment incentive documents have been issued for the agro parks being created in Azerbaijan, the total value of which exceeds 350 million manats ($205.88 million).
President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on additional measures to encourage investment on January 18, 2016. The decree was signed to expand investment activities, improve business environment, increase industrial production, as well as create a mechanism and normative legal acts related to encouragement of investments, in accordance with the action plan for realization of the “2015-2020 State Program for Development of Industry in Azerbaijan.”
Under the investment incentives document, half of the revenue of an individual entrepreneur, profits of legal entity are exempted from income tax for seven years. Import of equipment for the implementation of the projects is also exempt of VAT and customs duties.
Businessmen in Azerbaijan became eligible to get a document of the investment incentives following the approval of amendments proposed to the Tax Code of the country.
Safarov went on to say that the development of agro-parks is one of the main priorities of Azerbaijan, adding works on establishment of 42 agro-parks in 28 districts of the country are underway.
The deputy minister added that more than 98 million manats ($57.65 million) in soft loans were allocated by the National Entrepreneurship Support Fund to create 13 agro-parks.
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