Minister: Azerbaijan's non-oil and gas sector grows by 7% in 2024

Azerbaijan's non-oil and gas sector has experienced a significant growth of 7% over the first eight months of 2024, according to Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov.

“From 2011 to 2023, the average annual economic growth rate in the country was 1.5%, with the non-oil and gas sector growing by 4.4%. In the last eight months, we have seen a remarkable 7% economic growth in the non-oil sector,” Jabbarov stated during the Climate Week on September 30, as reported by Caliber.Az.

He highlighted Azerbaijan's commitment to the global "green transition," which is seen as a priority worldwide.

“Aligning our country’s climate change goals with global challenges has provided us with valuable experience. Our ‘green’ projects with major energy companies aim to transform Azerbaijan into a clean energy nation and promote investments that support environmental sustainability,” he said.

The minister emphasized that Azerbaijan has made specific commitments in this area. He noted that the Strategy for Socio-Economic Development for 2022–2026 aims to increase the share of renewable energy in electricity production and enhance waste processing efforts. “We are satisfied with SOCAR's voluntary commitment to implement a decarbonization strategy and achieve net-zero methane emissions by 2050 within the framework of COP,” he added.

As the host country for COP29, Azerbaijan has a set of responsibilities.

“Until now, countries have mostly thought and talked about what needs to be done in the context of climate change. The agenda of COP29 will be a step towards more concrete actions. COP29 will focus on establishing financing mechanisms for the energy transition,” Jabbarov emphasized.

He expressed the country's intention to involve all stakeholders in this process and achieve inclusive discussions. “To achieve this, we need to engage states, international organizations, financial institutions, and major companies in the energy sector to discuss incentives for attracting private investments into low-carbon business solutions,” he stressed.

Among the 14 key initiatives in the COP29 action program is the creation of a Climate Financing Action Fund (CFAF).

“We believe this Fund can play a vital role in addressing existing gaps in climate financing. The Fund's capital is expected to be primarily financed by fossil fuel-producing countries and companies involved in oil, gas, and coal extraction. The main goal of the Fund is to increase the contributions of resource-rich countries and enterprises in this sector to the green transition and to invest in combating climate change in developing countries and small island states,” Jabbarov stated.

He asserted that resource-rich countries should take a leading role in the fight against climate change. “This initiative could significantly help fill the gaps in climate financing. The Fund aims to raise $1 billion in capital, with at least 10 donor countries expected to join,” the minister concluded.

By Khagan Isayev