Agriculture Ministry: 200 female entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan to be given equipment, training
By Rasana Gasimova
Until the end of 2021, about 200 Azerbaijani women will be provided with certain technical equipment and training to continue their activities as entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector, chairperson of the Board of Agro Procurement and Supply OJSC under the Ministry of Agriculture Leyla Mammadova has said.
Mammadova made the remark on January 3 in an address to the first seminar on the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) cooperation program with Azerbaijan, dedicated to boosting wome’ns involvement in Azerbaijan’s agriculture sector.
Speaking at the event, Mammadova said that the increase in the number of women entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan’s agricultural sector will positively affect many factors.
She noted that the project to improve housing conditions and ensure food safety in villages through the development of economic opportunities for women has been implemented for two years now and is related to the state program on increasing employment and entrepreneurial conditions for women in Azerbaijan.
Mammadova added that the program for the development of women’s economic opportunities includes increasing their competitiveness in the domestic market, ensuring equal economic opportunities and rights, as well as resource management and technical assistance.
She further said that as part of the project, visits have been made to various Azerbaijani districts. As a result, an increase was recorded in the number of women employed in the agricultural sector, and the number of requests in this regard, Mammadova noted.
Mammadova stressed that during these visits, more than 500 meetings were held with women, where it was investigated what kind of production women farmers need and what funds are needed for this. She stressed that this work will be continued in 2020. Within a year, the appeals will be considered, and special programs will be prepared for applicants.
Addressing the seminar, Head of the Programs and Projects Department of Azerbaijan Agency for Agro Credit and Development Leyli Aghayeva noted that about 70 percent of employed women in Azerbaijan live in rural areas, whish shows that the project to increase the role of women employed in the agricultural sector will cover a significant part of all women employed in Azerbaijan.
"The agricultural sector in is one of the priority sectors of Azerbaijani economy as it involves around 40 percent of the Azerbaijani population," Aghayeva said.
She went on saying that the project is aimed at increasing the competitiveness of women in the country's agricultural sector. To this end, the agency, jointly with Agro Procurement and Supply Company, will facilitate the provision of technical assistance to female farmers.
Aghayeva also touched upon a joint program with the FAO, as part of which various projects in the field of potato growing, sheep breeding and in other areas have been completed since 2015.
Addressing the event, Kaan Basaran, a specialist in programs of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN) Partnership and Liaison Office in Azerbaijan said that Azerbaijan’s agricultural economy is transforming and the role of women in the sector shouldn't be forgotten.
He noted that women make up half of Azerbaijan’s population, and due to insufficient resources to realize their economic potential; they are less present in the market compared to men.
Basaran said that the goal of the institution he represents is to ensure a sustainable food supply chain and increase their availability.
“The project being implemented today will serve to increase the employment of women in Azerbaijan, strengthen their role in agriculture. Women’s activities in the agricultural sector will contribute to its development. Increasing the income of women in rural regions will also lead to the development and strengthening of the family institution,” he noted.
Note that in order to support the development of women farmers in the country, Azerbaijan has been implementing several projects together with international organizations, particularly with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
In March 2019, the Association of Rural Women of Azerbaijan was established by the Ministry of Agriculture jointly with the World Bank to support the social and economic development of rural women.
In May 2019, The State Agro Trade Company, together with the FAO, launched the Azerbaijani Women in Agriculture (AFAQ) project. The main goal of the project, which costs about $800,000, is to improve the technical skills of female farmers and facilitate their access to the market.
FAO's support for the food and agricultural sector of Azerbaijan is determined by the priorities set out in the new Country Program Framework, developed jointly with the Government of Azerbaijan, adapted to the requirements of "Azerbaijan 2020: Vision for the Future" and other national strategic documents.
The Current Country Program Framework covers the period 2016 - 2020, combining advanced international practices and global standards with national and regional experiences. FAO has implemented 53 projects since 1995 in Azerbaijan.
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