Center for processing livestock products to open in Azerbaijan
By Mirsaid Ibrahimzade
Azerbaijani women are increasingly involved in the socio-economic and socio-political life of the country, and their activities are expanding not only within the country, but also beyond national borders.
The Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan intends to open a center for processing livestock products in another Azerbaijani region, Sakina Babayeva, the head of the Association, told Trend.
"A similar center for washing and cleaning of sheep wool and hides is expected to open in Azerbaijan's Tovuz region," Babayeva added. "Earlier, similar centers were planned to open in Imishli and Bilasuvar regions."
She noted that the work in this direction has already begun. The residents of the regions will be provided with jobs and an opportunity will be created to export the processed animal products.
"We intend to open such centers in 10 more Azerbaijani regions. These products are planned to be exported to Turkey and South Korea," Babayeva said.
It is noteworthy that the Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan expands cooperation with colleagues abroad, For instance, the Association was invited to UAE to participate in a forum to be held in early May.
The Association was established with the support of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs in October 2017, primarily aimed at strengthening the role of women in the field of entrepreneurship, as well as the dynamic development of small and medium-sized businesses in Azerbaijan.
For a short period of work, the Association has concluded memorandums of cooperation with the associations of women entrepreneurs of Russia, Georgia, Latvia, and it plans to expand cooperation with similar organizations in various states in the territory of the former Soviet Union.
Over 143,000 women are engaged in business in Azerbaijan, according to statistics. The growth of entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan is one of the priority directions of the economic policy and it is closely related to the development of small and medium-sized businesses, and in particular to the development of women's business in the country.
Meanwhile, the share of Azerbaijani women in the socio-economic life of the country makes up 48.2 percent of the total number of employed population. Last year, the share of women among civil servants was 28.6 percent, and among entrepreneurs - 21.5 percent. Women engaged in physical education and sports made up 42 percent.
The number of women deputies in the parliament is also growing. While in 1990 women accounted for 4.3 percent of all MPs and for 10.7 percent in 2000, today the share of female MPs in the country reaches 16.8 percent.
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Mirsaid Ibrahimzade is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @MirsaidIbrahim1
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