President Aliyev highlights Azerbaijan's strong economic growth And low inflation

On September 26, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev addressed a meeting focused on economic issues, emphasizing the country's solid economic performance since the start of the year.

“The economic development has been at the expected level since the beginning of the year,” President Aliyev stated in his opening remarks, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

He highlighted the country's 4.3 per cent economic growth rate, describing it as a significant achievement.

"Analyzing the current processes in the world and looking at the geopolitical situation in general, I can say that this is a very positive indicator. The economic growth rates surpass that of many developed countries," the president added.

The head of state underscored the importance of diversifying Azerbaijan’s economy: "Our primary goal is to further diversify our economy and enhance the sustainable development model.”

President Aliyev also noted that inflation has remained low, at just over 1 per cent since the beginning of the year, which he described as a "very positive indicator."

He further announced that despite the low inflation and the significant financial demands, including military development and reconstruction efforts in Karabakh and East Zangazur, the government remains committed to improving citizens' welfare.

"I have already declared that the minimum wage and minimum pension will be increased next year, despite inflation being at a very low level and the significant financial resources required for the tasks ahead, particularly for the development of the military and military-industrial complex and the restoration of Karabakh and East Zangazur. Nevertheless, we are doing our utmost to improve the welfare of our citizens, who are considered vulnerable," President Aliyev added.

Emphasising the decline in oil production, President Aliyev said: “In recent years, the production of oil within the framework of projects being implemented by foreign oil companies has been declining year after year, which has naturally had a negative impact on our overall economic development rates, and we made up for this decline with the development of the non-oil sector,” said President Aliyev.

He further highlighted that negotiations with foreign oil companies have been aimed at addressing these challenges.

"However, as a result of negotiations with foreign oil companies, the drawbacks in oil production were brought to their attention, we demanded that they eliminate these drawbacks and ensure the stability of oil production. Very hard work has been done in this direction in the last few months. As a result of this work, reasonable hopes have arisen that there will be no further unfounded declines in oil production," the president noted.

Moreover, President Aliyev pointed out Azerbaijan’s strong standing on the global stage. "In terms of foreign debt ratio to the gross domestic product, Azerbaijan is among the world's leading countries,” he said, adding that the debt accounts for only 7.5% of the GDP. “This allows us the opportunity to spend less money on the repayment of foreign debt in the future," he added.

President Aliyev also underscored Azerbaijan's economic independence. “Azerbaijan’s economic development model has already confirmed itself in the world,” he said.

“We have built a strong economy relying on our own resources. We have built an independent economy and are not dependent on anyone. Economic independence naturally gives us great opportunities at the international level, so that Azerbaijan can conduct an independent foreign policy with success, confidence, honor and dignity – as we have done and will do,” President Aliyev concluded.

By Khagan Isayev