Every nation strives for the restoration of the highest ideal – the traditions of national statehood, independence – with its spiritual and intellectual potential, rich culture, level of national self-awareness in historically favorable conditions.
Such a real historical chance for the people of Azerbaijan arose in the second half of the last century – with the election of the great statesman, Great Leader Heydar Aliyev on July 14, 1969 as the leader of the republic.
At that time, Azerbaijan was one of the last countries in the former USSR in terms of economic indicators. The economic and political crisis in the republic was deepening year by year.
Ideological-political, socio-economic and moral crisis prevailed in various spheres of public life, and negative events took place. Our republic lagged behind the All-Union indicators in terms of the pace of development of national income, the volume of industrial and agricultural production, the application of the achievements of scientific and technological progress in production, the productivity of public labor.
In the current situation, the former USSR leadership saw the way out in personnel changes and, after serious and thorough research, focused on Heydar Aliyev, who was known among the various candidates for his organization, high management, education and deep national knowledge.
Despite its rich natural resources and production potential, Heydar Aliyev proved from the first days that Azerbaijan was one of the backward republics of the former USSR and proved to be a professional and wise statesman by ensuring the implementation of comprehensive measures for economic development.
First of all, the national leader tried to accelerate the attachment of Azerbaijanis to their historical traditions and roots by raising the national-spiritual spirit in the republic, to form the economic and material-technical base necessary for the people to live independently. In the 1970s, Azerbaijan became one of the leaders in the former USSR in terms of agricultural and industrial production, national income increased, the republic became a major construction site, and new production facilities began to operate. With the efforts of Heydar Aliyev, the Law Faculty of the university was opened again to the talented youth, where, along with the level of education and discipline, the work on training of lawyers entered a qualitatively new stage.
During his first leadership in Azerbaijan, the National Leader, who prepared a real political, legal and economic basis for the realization of the people’s feelings of independence and freedom with his multifaceted steps serving the national interests, was also at the center of complex socio-political processes. National Leader Heydar Aliyev, in response to the call of the people, took the helm of Azerbaijan in June 1993, resolutely resisted the difficulties, obstacles and coup attempts and saved our people from the threat of civil war and loss of national independence. National Leader Heydar Aliyev, in response to the call of the people in June 1993, saved Azerbaijan from the threat of losing its national independence, despite the difficulties, obstacles and coup attempts. With the election of Heydar Aliyev as President of Azerbaijan on October 3, 1993, the foundation of a new period in the life of our country was laid.
After the change of the legitimate government that took place in the country by the will of the people, there are real grounds for the independence of the state to manifest itself in practice. After the election of Heydar Aliyev as President, the process of ensuring the legal and political-economic sovereignty of the independent Azerbaijani state has accelerated. First of all, the Great Leader had to work hard to restore socio-political stability in the country.
Illegal armed groups have been neutralized, and socio-political stability has been established in the society as the most important factor leading to the socio-economic growth of Azerbaijan.
The existing realities fully revealed the crucial importance of the ceasefire reached at that time for the country. The signing of the ceasefire agreement, first of all, created a real basis for the liberation of our republic from chaos and anarchy, which faced several problems, for the formation of the foundations of Azerbaijan’s statehood, for the democratization process in the country.
On November 12, 1995, the first Constitution of independent Azerbaijan was adopted. Having a great experience of statehood, Heydar Aliyev objectively assessed the modern realities of the world and managed to prepare the Basic Law as a supreme legal document containing the experience of developed countries and national interests, specific features of the country, national and moral values in a unique form.
The formation and practical application of the theoretical and practical foundations of the national development strategy became possible after the return of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev to power in June 1993 at the insistence of the people. The National Leader sought to implement an optimal model of transition from a socio-economic formation dominated by the principles of central planning and distribution to a free market economy. The “Contract of the Century” signed with the world’s largest oil companies in 1994 has made Azerbaijan an important center for the whole world. This event has further strengthened the factors that create the basis for the protection of socio-political stability in Azerbaijan, the eternity of our independence, the development of democratic processes in our republic. Based on the idea put forward by the national leader, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, which has a history as the “Pipeline of the Century”, has changed the geopolitical landscape of the world.
The complex reforms implemented during that period soon led to fundamental qualitative changes in the economy. Since 1996, the level of inflation in our country has remained stable, the consistent policy pursued to increase the state budget, including salaries, pensions and benefits, social protection of the population has provided a significant increase in living standards in the country. Reflecting the contours and duties of the social policy of the state, it is stated in paragraph 16 of Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan: “the state of Azerbaijan takes care of improving the well-being of the people and each citizen, their social protection and decent living standards”.
Azerbaijan reaffirmed its commitment to social rights by signing the United Nations Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 1966, as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. During 1996-2003, in order to strengthen the social protection of the poor, there were 8 decrees and orders of the President and 2 decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers. As a result of their application, as well as due to the increase in wages in the country, the average monthly amount of pensions and benefits increased 8 times during 1995-2003.
Increase of pensions and benefits, construction of apartments for the disabled and martyrs’ families, provision of cars for the disabled, various rehabilitation aids, their medical and social rehabilitation, improvement of rehabilitation and prosthetic services, expansion of the service network in all regions, creation of new social facilities , the implementation of active employment measures, measures to improve workers’ rights and reliable protection measures have become traditional, starting with the initiative of the Great Leader.
The balanced foreign policy course pursued by the Great Leader at that time fully ensured the national interests of Azerbaijan and turned our country from a conflict zone of foreign forces into a geopolitical space where interests coincide. First of all, the tensions in diplomatic relations with our close neighbors – the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran – have been gradually eliminated, as well as diplomatic relations have been established with all developed countries and bilateral agreements have been signed.
Under the leadership of the National Leader, intensive work was carried out to resolve the then Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and a number of important results were achieved. The fact of military aggression of the Armenian armed forces against Azerbaijan has been repeatedly condemned by international organizations, and a number of resolutions have been adopted in protest.
Ilham Aliyev, who was elected President in October 2003 with great confidence of the people, along with successfully continuing the political course of Heydar Aliyev for the past 18 years, ensured the development of our republic based on the concept of “Strong state – independent policy”.His activities over the past 18 years have fully confirmed that all the promises made by the head of state are in line with the real potential of the country. The course of multifaceted reforms pursued by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has laid the foundation for great successes in the economy and made significant progress in the lives of every citizen.
If in 1993-2003 the protection of state independence from internal and external threats, the revival of the economy, the promotion of our country in the international arena were practical goals, the realities of life over the past 15 years have set new goals. There are very few countries that can be compared to Azerbaijan in terms of development dynamics over the past 18 years.
This period is characterized by the implementation of grandiose projects that affect world politics. Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main export oil, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas, as well as TAP and TANAP pipelines within the Southern Gas Corridor, Umid, Absheron and others are part of the national leader’s new oil strategy. The discovery of promising fields and the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, which will connect East and West, should be noted in this regard.
Despite the negative impact of the pandemic on the complex political and economic processes taking place at the global level, and the fact that many countries face serious economic, financial and social problems, the Azerbaijani economy has maintained its stability over the past two years. The preventive measures taken by President Ilham Aliyev in a pandemic situation have enabled Azerbaijan to confidently counter global threats in the current situation. As a result, Azerbaijan, which has successfully implemented its strategic goals and important social and business support packages, is making significant progress in 2022.
The state budget for 2022 allows our country to successfully implement the issues of social security, defense and security, as well as the goals of capital investment next year. Next year, a significant part of budget revenues will fall to the non-oil sector.
Thus, 52.4 percent of revenues will be provided by the oil sector and 47.6 percent by the non-oil sector. The annual increase in the share of the non-oil sector in the formation of budget revenues is a real result of the government’s economic diversification policy and measures to improve the business environment. The main goals of the budget policy for the next year are to improve the social situation of the population, restore the liberated territories, achieve sustainable development of the non-oil sector, maintain a stable macroeconomic situation and stimulate dynamic development. Along with social infrastructure projects, as well as social protection measures in the event of a pandemic, the state budget aims to increase the country’s defense and security spending, which is a necessity dictated by objective reality. One of the main factors making it necessary to increase military spending is the need to create and form new military units and headquarters in the liberated territories.
One of the important points in next year’s state budget is the provision of 2.2 billion manat for the restoration and reconstruction of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, as well as the implementation of important social infrastructure projects. The aim is to provide financial support for the implementation of such important tasks as the restoration and reconstruction of our liberated territories with high dynamism and quality, the formation of appropriate socio-economic, energy, utilities and transport infrastructure, the organization of normal life and business activities of returning citizens. All this will be an important stage in the implementation of the plan for a” big return”, the restoration of the road-transport infrastructure of districts and cities cleared of invaders, electricity, water, communications, blue fuel, etc. it creates serious grounds to say that important projects will be implemented in the direction of its provision.
The state budget for 2022 is generally socially oriented. It should be noted that after the presidential elections held in Azerbaijan on April 11, 2018, measures have been expanded to improve the social welfare of citizens. The main goal of the reforms at the new stage is to create conditions for especially low-income and vulnerable groups to benefit more fully and comprehensively from the development processes in the country.
Adoption and implementation of two social reform envelopes in 2019, increasing the amount of benefits and pensions by an average of 92, the minimum amount of pensions by 72, the minimum wage by 92, the average salary of employees of state-funded institutions by 50 percent fully reflects the social nature of state economic policy made. Compared to the beginning of 2018, 39 percent increase in the average monthly nominal salary, 60 percent in the average amount of pensions, 2 times in the average amount of social benefits, and 2.2 times in the average amount of pensions of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan allowed to improve social protection and quality of life.
Despite the weakening of economic growth in a number of countries in the region in 2020-2021 due to a new type of coronavirus pandemic, the 4.9 percent growth of GDP in Azerbaijan in January-October allowed for serious social measures for the coming period. In this context, leading economic and financial institutions and rating centers appreciate the systemic economic policy and reforms in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan has put an end to the process of economic decline in 2021, and our country has reached pre-pandemic levels in terms of economic development.
However, it must be acknowledged that the rise in energy prices and aggregate demand in the world against the background of the removal of restrictive measures, the dynamics of economic activity has also led to an increase in commodity prices. It is a natural and irresistible process that this situation does not pass unnoticed to Azerbaijan, which imports a number of goods and products from abroad.
In this situation, the government aims to take all necessary measures to compensate for the material damage caused to citizens, especially those from low-income, vulnerable groups. The Presidential Decree “On Additional Measures to Protect the Social Welfare of the Population” dated October 16, 2021 envisages comprehensive measures in terms of social protection measures. According to the order, the Cabinet of Ministers prepared and submitted proposals to reflect the relevant measures in the draft state budget for 2022 to increase the amount of salaries, pensions and social benefits, pensions and other social benefits.
For the first time, about 13.9 billion manat or 46.4 percent of the budget expenditures amounting to 29.9 billion manat will be social. Compared to 2021, social spending will increase by 13.5 percent, or 1 billion 650 million manat. In 2022, only wages in the amount of 8 billion 97 million Manats are offered. It is planned to allocate 3 billion 566 million Manats in the state budget for social security expenses. The increase in the share of social spending in the budget to this level once again confirms that Azerbaijan pursues a socially oriented policy. From January 1, 2022, the government will take consistent measures to increase salaries and pensions, social benefits, pensions, as well as other social benefits. 3 billion 566 million manat will be allocated from the state budget for social security expenditures.
At present, Azerbaijan ranks first in the CIS in terms of the purchasing power index for the amount of the minimum pension, and second in terms of the purchasing power of the average pension. This positive trend is one of the indicators of the effectiveness of social policy in our country.
At present, Azerbaijan ranks first in the NIS in terms of the purchasing power index for the amount of the minimum pension, and second in terms of the purchasing power of the average pension. This positive trend is one of the indicators of the effectiveness of social policy in our country. 210 million manat is envisaged in the budget to increase the insurance part of labour pensions. In 2022, it was aimed to increase the average monthly amount of Labor Pensions to 345 Manats, and the minimum amount from 200 to 240 Manats. Based on the requirements of the European Social Charter, the ratio of the average monthly pension in 2022 to the average monthly wage is expected to reach 43 per cent.
All this also shows that despite the fact that the restoration and reconstruction of the territories liberated after the Great Patriotic War is a priority, the government still treats the measures of social protection and the implementation of social policy as an important issue. In this sense, it is safe to say that at no stage in history has Azerbaijani society undergone such rapid changes as in recent years, and the human factor has not been raised as such a topical issue. The human factor was at the heart of the President’s economic policy based on practical policy, and Mr. Ilham Aliyev confirmed that he was a worthy President of every Azerbaijani, remaining true to all his promises to the people.
Over the past 18 years, the President of Azerbaijan has successfully ensured the activities of the Institute of Amnesty and Pardon on the basis of flexible and efficient mechanisms. The head of state, who has proved in practice that every citizen is the President, also thinks about the fate of those who committed crimes for these and other reasons. The adoption of an amnesty on November 8 – Victory Day – confirms this. All this shows that as a result of the purposeful policy pursued by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, who upheld the immortal ideas of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev in all areas and put them into practice, the national progress of the people always comes to the fore. According to the President, after the historic victory, Azerbaijan is experiencing the most glorious and powerful period of its history.
Sattar MOHBALIYEV, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Trade Unions Confederation, MP