Azernews.Az

At the founding conference of the NGO Platform of the Member States of the Organization of Turkic States, held in Nakhchivan on November 25, a formal decision was adopted appointing Azər Allahveranov as the Platform’s Secretary General.

Azernews reports that Allahveranov, a member of the Board of the National NGO Forum of Azerbaijan and a Member of the National Assembly, will lead the newly established platform, which unites civil society representatives from Azerbaijan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Hungary, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

It was noted that although representatives from eight different countries participated, everyone is united by a shared Turkic identity, common culture and values, forming a single family in which all feel comfortable, safe and strong. The participants agreed that by acting together, more impactful and effective results can be achieved.

For the first time, representatives of civil society from Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Hungary, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus signed a Joint Declaration and established the NGO Platform of the Member States of the Organization of Turkic States.

Azerbaijan was entrusted with the first chairmanship of the new NGO Platform. The Secretary General will rotate depending on which country holds the chairmanship of the Organization of Turkic States, and will be selected from distinguished civil society representatives of that country. However, the permanent headquarters of the Platform will be located in Baku.

This represents a historic achievement and a new demonstration of the rapid development of Azerbaijani NGOs in recent years, whose initiatives have gained broad international support.

The announcement of the NGO Platform of the Member States of the Organization of Turkic States was welcomed with applause by representatives from all member countries.