Azerbaijan, Europe mull investments
By Aynur Jafarova
German companies intend to study the investment climate and possiblilities of expanding cooperation with Azerbaijan in various sectors of the economy, German Ambassador to Azerbaijan Heidrun Tempel said on September 11 at a European-Azerbaijan investment conference.
Addressing the event, the ambassador stressed the importance of the conference for Azerbaijan and European countries.
According to Tempel, the conference will be an important step towards the development of cooperation with the government of Azerbaijan, the business community and private entrepreneurs.
Charge D'Affaires of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Toralf Pilz said that Azerbaijan has the fastest developing economy.
According to him, Azerbaijan has a very interesting business climate and a strong and competitive economy.
Pilz also cited the importance of signing a free trade agreement for joining the World Trade Organization.
Addressing the event, Deputy Economic Development Minister Sevinj Hasanova said that the economic achievements of Azerbaijan set new goals before the country.
"Cooperation with the European Union is one of the priorities of Azerbaijan's foreign policy. The EU countries form some 45 percent of the trade turnover of the country and the EU has been the leading trade partner of our country for many years. About half of foreign investment made in Azerbaijan falls to the EU," Hasanova said.
According to her, thanks to the successful policy carried out under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan has been able to achieve great success, to maintain economic development and successfully integrate into the international economic system in a short time.
"In the last ten years the GDP of the country has increased 3.4 times, the strategic currency reserves have approached $50 billion, and investment worth $132 billion has been made in the national economy. As a result of significant development of the taxation system and simplifications of the taxation procedures, an important impetus was given to the development of private entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan. The economic development of the country is appreciated by international organizations and rating agencies," she said.
Speaking about the new goals facing the country, the deputy minister said, "One of the main goals for the next decade is further development of economic cooperation with the EU countries, increase of the trade turnover with the countries of the region. Deepening of ties between the business circles of Europe and Azerbaijan plays a serious role in the development of this cooperation. From this viewpoint the investment conference is of tremendous significance," Hasanova said.
Baku hosted the first European-Azerbaijan Investment Conference with B2B meetings on September 11. The event was attended by over 190 businessmen from 12 countries as well as representatives of international organizations, diplomats and officials.
The event was organized by AZPROMO, German-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce, and European Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry with the support of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
After the event Hasanova told journalists that European companies play a significant role and are actively involved in the process of Azerbaijan's economic development.
According to her, in the last ten years over 1,200 European companies operating in various sectors, including construction, industry, alternative energy, trade, banking and agriculture, have been registered in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan successfully adopts leading European experience in these fields by using new technologies and know-how in various sectors of the economy, Hasanova said.
"Our vision into the future, envisaged in the development concept 'Azerbaijan-2020: vision into the future' is development of the non-oil sector. In this connection goals on determining and access to new markets have been set. From this point of view the European market is a very important market for us," she said.
Macedonia seeks Azerbaijani investment
Head of the representative office of the Macedonian Agency for Foreign Investments and Export Promotion in Azerbaijan, Goran Stoyev, told Trend news agency that Macedonia is interested in attracting Azerbaijani investments to its economy.
"Our activity is focused on two directions. We are interested not only in establishing and strengthening relations with Azerbaijani business people, but also attracting Azerbaijani business to investing in Macedonia. We have informed Azerbaijani entrepreneurs about the economic situation in Macedonia, the business climate and investment potential of our country," he said.
According to Stoyev, the agency intends to work to familiarize Azerbaijani entrepreneurs with the features and prospects of the Macedonian market.
"Our representative office in Baku was opened three months ago. Since then we have held a meeting with representatives of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO), various ministries and agencies, financial organizations and businessmen. Even more meetings are planned to be held until the end of the year. Moreover, our foundation is going to hold an investment conference in Baku this year. A wide range of Macedonia's investment opportunities will be shown to Azerbaijani entrepreneurs," he said.