tourism in azerbaijan

Transcription

2013
w w w. a z p r o m o. a z
Tourism
IN azerbaijan

Azerbaijan
in Figures
2
Investing
in Tourism
sector of
Azerbaijan
4
6 Sector
overview
Cultural
and heritage
tourism
Recreation
tourism
Business
tourism
Eco-tourism
Religious
tourism
Sport and
adventure
tourism
Business and
investment
opportunities
21
contents
We are
already here
Reasons
to invest
in Azerbaijan
24
27
Information
on Azerbaijan
Export &
Investment
28
Promotion
Foundation
(AZPROMO)
30
Important notice:
All statistical information
used in this publication is
provided by the State Statistical Committee of the
Republic of Azerbaijan.
2
Azerbaijan
in figures
l TERRITORY
86 600 km2
l CLIMATIC ZONES/TYPES
9 out of existing in the world
l CAPITAL CITY
Baku
l BORDERING COUNTRIES
Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Iran;
Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan
l LANGUAGE
Azerbaijani
l NUMBER OF TOURISTS
1 985, 9 thsd. (2012)
l POPULATION
9,356.5
(as of the beginning of the year 2013)
l NUMBER OF BEDS
32834 (2012)
l CURRENCY
Azerbaijani manat (AZN)
l NUMBER OF HOTELS
514 (2012)
l GDP
69,2 bln. USD (2012)
l NUMBER OF OVERNIGHT STAYS
1 640 863 (2012)
l GDP per capita
7490.5 USD (2012)
l NUMBER OF TOURISM COMPANIES
170 (2012)
l FDI (1995-2012)
46.8 bln. USD
l TIME ZONE
GMT + 04:00
l LABOUR FORCE
4.6 mln. people
Investing in Tourism
of Azerbaijan
National Flag Square,
Baku, Azerbaijan
4
m sector
INVEST IN DEVELOPMENT TODAY, BECOME A PART
OF THE PROSPEROUS TOMORROW!
Azerbaijan, eternally green, eternally seething,
lively, inquisitive and benevolent has stepped
into the XXI century not simply democratic and
independent, also politically mature and getting
stronger economically. This transition simultaneously opened for the country the door to a new level
of the international relations and financial prosperity- the world of professional tourism.
The sphere of the fairylike travels and adventures,
active rest in paradise oases and against a background of turquoise waves, contemplate and cognitive trips, the refined tasting of the Eastern dishes
– all this Azerbaijan hospitably offers to the people
of good will and the tourists from many countries
have already begun to travel here. Azerbaijan has
all the necessary ingredients of a tourist-friendly
country: hospitable people, rich cultural, historic
and religious diversity, beautiful natural scenery,
delicious cuisine and exotic foods, and many more.
The number of foreign tourists increases rapidly.
While it was 435,500 in 2002, the number of tourists visited Azerbaijan in 2012 made up 1 985, 9
thsd. persons.
The strengthening of the image of Azerbaijan on the
international scene as a country with a high tourism
profile, contributes to the dynamic development of
the country in the sphere of culture and tourism. To
achieve these goals, the Republic has both the necessary capacity and the personnel capable to realize
all planned projects. Dozens of investment projects,
directed on development of professional service in
places, are implemented. Training courses for the
personnel are organized. The big modern star hotels
receive the guests from all over the world.
Azerbaijan, as a young “tour-operator”-beginner,
quickly studies and gets experience. Eight big
international tourist exhibitions have already passed
here, and our country, in its turn, has participated in
the most prestigious international tourist forums in
London (WTM), Berlin (ITB), Moscow (MITT), Istanbul (MTE), and many others. Azerbaijan cooperates
already with 28 countries in the sector of tourism.
This number is increasing every year.
Azerbaijan offers great potential for international
investors to participate in the development of this
fascinating area.
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Azerbaijan is one of the fastest growing economies
worldwide. Following the sharp decline in early
90’s of the last century, its economy has undergone the process of reanimation and recovery and
entered a new phase of sustainable growth. In the
first decade of the current century Azerbaijan’s
real economy grew threefold. By implementing
vital economic and regulatory reforms Azerbaijan
significantly improved its economic performance
and is considered nowadays increasingly competitive worldwide. As such, the World Economic
Forum places azerbaijan 39th in the world in its
Global Competitiveness Report 2013-2014.
According to this index, Azerbaijan is the most
competitive economy in CIS.
The Heydar Aliyev Center,
Baku, Azerbaijan
6
SECTOR
OVERVIEW
According to the report made by the
World Economic Forum Azerbaijan ranks
78th among 140 countries on the Travel
& Tourism Competitiveness Index. Compared to 2011, Azerbaijan moved up from
83rd place to 78th. The reports says that
Azerbaijan ranks 46th among 140 countries on T&T Regulatory Framework, 87th
on business and environment infrastructure and 96th on T&T human, cultural and
natural resources. Moreover, the World
Tourism Organization places Azerbaijan
2nd in the world on the growth of tourist
inflow in percentage ratio. As a result, in
2012 profits earned by tourism enterprises has tripled since 2006. Such performance underpins the latest developments
in country’s tourism industry. It became
one of the fastest developing segments
of economy with immense potential and
opportunities. It is, moreover, assigned
an important role in the enunciated
aspirations of the government towards
diversified economy. Azerbaijan pursues
a result-oriented policy on the development and promotion of tourism. The
dedicated Ministry of Culture and Tourism
is tasked to implement this policy. In
addition to that, a sector-specific body
of law regulating the state policy in the
sector, the tourism–related activities, and
the rational use of tourism resources of
the country has been developed over the
last decade. These elements are linchpin
of positive performance by the tourism
industry in recent years.
1 962,9
2 239,2
2 484,1
6-21
1 830,4
NUMBER OF FOREIGN CITIZENS ARRIVED TO AZERBAIJAN
(THSD. PERSONS)
2009
2010
2011
2012
7
Foreign tourists
according to travel
objectives (2012)
1 005,4
1 279,8
1 561,9
1 985,9
NUMBER OF FOREIGN TOURISTS (THSD. PERSONS)
2009
2010
2011
2012
other forms of tourism
leisure, recreation
visiting relatives
30%
business
8
Top 10
FOREIGN NATIONALS ARRIVED
TO Azerbaijan in 2012
Rank
Country
N OF FOREIGN CITIZENS (THSD. PERSONS)
1
Russi a
8 7 6,0
2
G eo rgi a
7 6 3,2
3
I ra n
2 8 3,7
4
Tur key
2 9 5,5
5
U kra i ne
4 2,4
6
U ni t ed K i ng d om
2 9,1
7
Ka za khst a n
2 5,3
8
USA
1 3,7
9
G er m a ny
1 6,4
10
O t her c ount r i es
1 3 8,8
452
499
508
514
Number of hotels
and hotel-type enterprises
2009
2010
2011
2012
9
30 571
30 793
31 979
32 834
Number of beds in hotels
and hotel-type enterprises
2009
2010
2011
2012
Azerbaijan is not only an attractive
destination for international business,
but is also emerging as a new tourism
destination. Number of foreign citizens
arrived to the country grew by 96.8%
in the last 6 years within 2006-2012,
while number of foreign tourists visiting
Azerbaijan increased by 3 times in the
same time span. Still, most of the visitors
come from the bordering states (Russia, Georgia, Turkey, Iran, Kazakhstan,
and Turkmenistan). But for all that, the
interest of visitors from other countries
and regions is rapidly growing. For
instance, a number of EU citizens arrived
to Azerbaijan in the last 4 years increased
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by 50%. This tendency owes to increased
popularity and visibility of the country
in different parts of the world, active
foreign policy and favourable economic
conditions. Moreover, Azerbaijan is one
of the most secure and safest countries in
the region. No less important is the active
marketing and promotion campaign of
Azerbaijan’s tourism potential put on a
wide scale abroad.
This tendency is indispensable to the
development of tourism infrastructure.
Increased number of visitors stimulates
direct development of accommodation
industry and related services. The number
of hotels and hotel-type accommodation
facilities in Azerbaijan increased from 93
in 2001 up to 514 in 2012. In consequence
of introduction of certification of hotels,
their condition and the quality of services
improved strikingly.
The year of 2011 was designated as the
“Year of Tourism” in Azerbaijan.
About 50 hotel construction projects
were ongoing in 2012. It is no wonder
that world-famous hotel chains are
entering the market. Six new hotels in
Baku are the leaders in the global hotel
industry (Hilton, Jumeirah, Kempinski,
Four Seasons, Marriott, and Fairmont).
1 315 135
1 358 286
1 504 312
1 640 863
Number of overnight stays
2009
2010
2011
2012
Value of tourism related services
rendered to foreign citizens ($)
$
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
190 247
352 805
620 652
1 287 331
2 433 338
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CULTURAL AND HERITAGE TOURISM
Azerbaijan is a country of rich cultural and historic
heritage. Over thousands of years it cradled high
culture and was in the thick of major historic events.
Many caravan routs including the Great Silk Way run
through Azerbaijan. They linked ancient civilizations
like Sumer, Assyria, Greece, Rome, Iran, Turkey, India,
China and other. Most of those civilizations left their
mark on the history and culture of Azerbaijan.
Today, more than 6 thousand historic and cultural
monuments are scattered over the country, 65 of
which belong to the monuments of universal importance. Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah’s
Palace and Maiden Tower, as well as Gobustan Rock
Art Cultural Landscape are included in the World
Heritage List by UNESCO.
Currently, Azerbaijan is proposing a number of international historical and cultural routes, which are now
prepared for international certification in collaboration with European cultural route institutions. These
include the Wine Tour, Great Silk Way, Alexander
Dumas in Caucasus, reflecting the variety of tastes
and preferences.
There is a tradition of announcement of cultural and
art capitals of Azerbaijan in various areas for each
year. For instance, in year 2012 Masalli is announced
the “Capital of folklore”, Guba the “Capital of Crafts”
and Gedabek the “Capital of Legends”. Also Baku was
announced the Capital of Islamic Culture for year 2009
by OIC.
The people of Azerbaijan are among the oldest nations in the world with the rich culture, art and music.
It is no coincidence that the richest museums in the
world possess numerous pieces of Azerbaijani material and spiritual culture. Moreover, the traditional art
12
of Azerbaijani carpet weaving, the art of Azerbaijani
ashiqs, Novruz and Azerbaijani mugham are among
the elements of the intangible cultural heritage of
humanity, the list of which is held by UNESCO. There
are 226 museums in the country itself, which offer
their visitors a possibility to plunge into the world of
history, culture and art of the Azerbaijani people.
At present, the day-to-day life in Azerbaijan is also
rich of many cultural events both of national and
of international importance. Exhibitions, literary
evenings, theater festivals are of regular occurrence.
Azerbaijan hosts each year annual international music
festivals like Gabala International Music Festival, International Rostropovich Festival, International Vocalists Contest, Baku Jazz Festival, International Mugham
Festival that attract world-famous music figures and
connoisseurs. These festivals are justifiably ranked
among authoritative international cultural events of a
year. In 2012, the city of Baku hosted the “Eurovision”
international song contest following its success in the
last year’s round. The number of guests who visited
Azerbaijan during the Eurovision - 2012 song contest,
including contestants and delegation, is in the range
of 6000 to 7000 people. In addition 103,000 people
had crossed the border of Azerbaijan during those 15
days.
Today, Azerbaijan is known as a cultural center of
the world. Recent international events such as World
Forums on Intercultural and Inter-civil Dialogues
are striking examples of this fact. The number
of tourists visiting Azerbaijan for the purpose of
acquaintance with its national history and culture,
as well as to participate in various cultural events is
increasing fast.
Old City,
Baku, Azerbaijan
13
Duzdagh Cave, Physiotherapy Centre,
Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan
14
RECREATIONAL TOURISM
Being rich of natural resources Azerbaijan found
its niche in the sphere of medical tourism. Along
with conventional healthcare, alternative methods
of illness treatment and wellness promotion (e.g.
thermal therapy, balneology etc) with the use of
natural materials like crude oil, thermal waters,
salt mines, salubrious mud became popular not
only among the local population, but also foreign
citizens visiting the country. This type of recreational tourism shows increased potential for further
development.
Azerbaijan is a country rich of hot and mineral
springs’ birthplaces, thermal sulphur-hydrogen water sources and all types of mud volcanoes that are
used for medical purposes. There are around 800
mud volcanoes existing in the world, 300 of which
reside in Azerbaijan. The mud is used for treatment
of radiculitis, skin, cardiovascular, gynecological,
urological diseases, and gastrointestinal disturbances. It is also widely used in the cosmetology.
Another exceptional medical product of Azerbaijan
is its well-known healing “Naftalan” oil which is
considered a treatment for many diseases. Naftaw w w. a z p r o m o. a z
lan, the place of origin of this crude oil, is a famous
balneotherapeutic health resort well-known for
its oil baths. The first specialised resort complex
was established here in 1926. The production of
Naftalan ointment dates even earlier to the end of
19th century, when a German engineer established
a small ointment production enterprise here.
Azerbaijan is also known for its salt mines used
for asthma therapy. The most popular one is called
“Duzdagh Cave” (salty mountain cave) located
in Nakhchivan. There are over-and underground
treatment premises located 300 meters below sea
level. The Cave is rich with sodium chloride ions
which are useful for treatment of bronchial asthma,
hay fever, bronchitis, rhinitis and other respiratory
organs diseases.
Becoming a popular place for recreational tourism,
Azerbaijan attracts more tourists. It is worth to
mention that the number of tourists coming for
medical treatment has increased in last ten years
and amounted 42 997 tourists in 2012. This shows
the great potential for further development of
recreational tourism in Azerbaijan.
15
Batabat Lake, shabuz State Reserve,
Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan
16
BUSINESS TOURISM
Today, Azerbaijan is a dynamically developing
country with favourable business climate. It is a
place, where many important international projects
are implemented. Azerbaijan hosts many industrial
exhibitions and conferences covering such economic sectors like oil and gas, agriculture and food
processing, ICT, construction and others.
With the development of economy and increasing
business contacts with abroad, the importance of
business tourism in Azerbaijan cannot be undervalued. Conferences, meetings, exhibitions and fairs,
corporate events and individual business travels account for a growing share of total inbound tourism
into Azerbaijan. Almost 30% of tourists visiting the
country are business tourists.
Moreover, Azerbaijan became a famous location
of major international events such as the World
Economic Forum, Annual Meeting of the Islamic
Development Bank, the Crans Montana Forum,
Annual Meeting of the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank organised by local and foreign public
and private institutions, as well as international
organisations. Based on its successful experience
Azerbaijan will host the Annual Meeting of the
Asian Development Bank in 2015 and the Annual
Meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development in 2017. As result, the number
of convention facilities and related infrastructure
increased rapidly. Modern infrastructure for business tourism such as conference halls and businesscentres is in place. Development of business tourism
made a considerable contribution to the growth of
leisure economy as well.
As the business tourism has a direct link with business activities and stimulates trade and investment,
its big portion in the total tourism sector indicates
again the favourable business climate established in
Azerbaijan.
ECO-TOURISM
The nature of Azerbaijan is characterised
by its richness. The country has a unique
climate:
l Nine climatic zones out of eleven existing in the
world present here. Azerbaijan is a country of climatic contrasts: subtropics, deserts, orhylile forests,
alpine meadows and many other nature zones are
represented there. It translates into the wide variety
of flora and fauna.
l Over 370 plant sorts or around 4,500 plant species are spread all over the country. It accounts for
66% of all plant species grown in the Caucasus. Over
15,000 fauna types exist in Azerbaijan.
l The country established 8 national parks, 11
reserves, 12 state wildlife sanctuaries covering the
total area of 890 thousand hectares to insure the
protection of available ecologic systems.
Rich nature of Azerbaijan opens wide opportunities for ecotourism. While it is not that
popular type of tourism yet, it has enormous
potential for development and opens up wide
opportunities for investments.
17
Azerbaijan is among the most
religiously tolerant countries
in the world. It is confirmed by
all religious, public and state
figures.
The peaceful coexistence of different religious confessions in Azerbaijan “has been possible thanks to
a spirit of tolerance and mutual acceptance, which
cannot fail to be a reason for pride for the country”
The Pope John Paul II said.
Along with the majority of population professing
Islam, representatives of Christian and Jewish communities enjoy the same status and level of religious
freedom.
l There are 1834 mosques, 12 churches and 6
synagogues functioning in Azerbaijan.
l The culture and history of Azerbaijan embrace
the elements of many civilizations, religions and
specific features of Caucasus. Islam, Christianity,
Judaism and Zoroastrianism are present here from
very ancient times and left their impact on the cultural heritage throughout the history of this place.
l Ancient Muslim Mosques, unique ancient
Christian Albanian temples, Catholic and Orthodox
Churches, Jewish Synagogues, the Gothic “Kirche”
built in 1899 for Baku’s German Lutherans, “Ateshgah” – an eternal fire place that used to be fire
worshippers Temple and many other historical and
religious monuments fascinate foreign visitors.
l Azerbaijan is emerging destination for religious
tourists. In 2012 13225 foreign citizens visited the
country for religious purposes. Their number keeps
growing.
18
RELIGIOUS TOURISM
Night view from Old City to Flame Towers,
Baku, Azerbaijan
19
Azerbaijan is the country that has old traditions in
numerous sports. Our athletes are consecutively awarded
with medals in Olympic Games, different countries’,
European and Asian championships. National Olympic
Committee, 24 Olympic and 45 non-Olympic sports
federations operate in Azerbaijan. Moreover, government
strongly supports development and promotion of sport in
the country.
Shahdag Winter-Summer Tourism Complex,
Gusar, Azerbaijan
20
SPORT AND ADVENTURE TOURISM
Sport perfectly combines both public
and private investments.
l 36 modern Olympic Games
facilities have been built in Azerbaijan in recent years,.
l 9,954 sporting installations and
complexes operate throughout the
country.
l Shahdag Winter-Summer Tourism Complex in Gusar was put into
use in December 2012. The complex includes trade centers, restaurant, café, game hall, equestrian
sport, skiing and other services.
The project was launched in 2006.
The Shahdagh Complex Directorate
was established to run the project.
Construction of the complex began
in September 2009. The complex
is located 32 km from the regional
centre - Gusar. Its total area is
2,058 hectares. The construction area is situated in Shahdagh
National Park. The complex is at
1,300-2,351 m and its main part
at 1,640 m above sea level. Unlike
from existing systems of this
type in the world, it will operate
throughout the year.
l Establishment of necessary infrastructure created opportunities
for holding various national and
international sport events. World
and European boxing, wrestling,
rhythmic gymnastics, fencing and
other sports Championships are
held in the country.
l In 2012, FIFA U-17 Women’s
World Cup was held in Azerbaijan
as well.
l Azerbaijan has been nominated
to host European Football Championship in 2020.
l Baku will host the first European
Games in 2015, FIDE World Cup
2015, World Chess Olympiad 2016
and Islamic Solidarity Games 2017.
In light of this, sport and
adventure tourism is one of the
priority directions of overall
tourism development. All
necessary conditions, including
governmental support have
been provided for this.
21
BUSINESS /
INVESTMENT
OPPORTUNITIES
22
Accommodation
Construction
of 3-4 star hotels
Construction of
tourism complexes
Adventure
tourism and
recreation
Development of
infrastructure for
recreation zones
Development
of adventure
facilities
Tourism
services
Travel agencies
Rent a car
Hotel booking
Pick-up service
Ancillary
services
Boulevard
Baku, Azerbaijan
Food and beverages
National souvenirs,
gifts, copper plates
and others.
Shopping
Entertainment
(cinemas, museums, entertainment
centres and others)
Events and
conferences
23
®
®
®
WE ARE
25 ALREADY HERE
REASONS TO
INVEST IN
AZERBAIJAN
Funicular,
Baku, Azerbaijan
The Republic of Azerbaijan is the leading FDI destination in the
region. In course of last seven years the GDP has tripled; the
country sustained macroeconomic stability and effected farreaching economic and regulatory reforms ensuring sustainability and attractiveness of domestic investment environment.
Almost $120 billion was invested in Azerbaijani economy over
the last 16 years both by local and international investors.
Azerbaijan made gradual transformation from planned economy into full-fledged market economy based on the developed
and active private sector. Nowadays, the private sector produces 82.5% of the GDP. There are a few factors that turned Azerbaijan into the leading FDI destination and provide sound justification for doing business here.
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Political and economic stability
FDI friendly laws
Firm political and macroeconomic stability is one of the determinants of favourable business and investment climate. Safety,
government and policy stability are considered the most critical
factors by international businesses present in Azerbaijan. This
fact is confirmed by the Global Competitiveness Report 20122013 of the World Economic Forum.
Azerbaijan is one the leading economies globally in terms
of economic growth indicators. A record GDP growth was
observed in 2006 accounting for 34.5%. Even in the period of
global financial turmoil Azerbaijan managed to keep the high
pace of development and increased its non-oil GDP during last
10 years on average by 10.6%. It is known that the stability
of the macroeconomic environment is important for business
and, therefore is important for the overall competitiveness of a
country.
Azerbaijani legislation is evolving in accordance with the welcoming
policy of the Government for foreign businesses. A revolutionary legal
reform was carried out in the last decade resulting in introduction of
completely new codes, laws and regulations improving business environment in the country. As a result of regulatory reforms Azerbaijan
was named top-reformer of business regulations in the world in the
World Bank Doing Business 2009 Report. Moreover, there is a solid
legislative framework for protection of foreign investors established
by the Law on protection of foreign investments and other legal acts
of similar nature. Today, Azerbaijan is placed among the top economies in the world narrowing the distance to best performance the
most since 2005 according to the recent Doing Business Report.
Foreign investments are guaranteed against adverse changes in the
legislation, nationalisation and requisition, along with guarantees of
compensation of damages and of repatriation of profits.
Azerbaijan is a party to 46 bilateral treaties on mutual protection of
investment and a number of multilateral conventions like the UN
Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitrate
Awards (29.12.1958) and Washington Convention on the Settlement
of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of other States
(18.03.1965). The country has signed over 40 bilateral treaties on the
avoidance of double taxation.
Abundant resources and favourable location
One of the major resources of Azerbaijan is its natural diversity. Despite
relatively small size, Azerbaijani territory has 9 climatic zones out of
11 existing in the world ranging from humid subtropical climate to
semi-arctic due to its complex terrain and geography. This creates unique
opportunities in tourism.
In addition to natural resources, Azerbaijan benefits strongly from its
favourable location on the crossroads of Eurasia serving as the natural
bridge between Europe and Asia. The country is the logistics hub for
the Caspian region with the best transport infrastructure in the South
Caucasus.
Azerbaijan operates 6 international airports with direct flights to major
European as well as Asian cities, and the biggest port on the Caspian
Sea and has over 29,000 km of hard-surface roads and over 2,000 km of
operational railroads.
28
Favourable tax regime
Business engaged in tourism sector is subject to
statutory tax regime, which is still competitive
enough. Corporate profit tax was reduced in 2010
from 22% to 20%, while VAT is levied at the rate of
18%. In order to ease tax burden for small size businesses the country introduced simplified tax regime,
whereby taxpayers with total revenue not exceeding 120,000 Azerbaijani manats for the previous 12
months period are charged at the rate of 4% (the
taxpayers operating in Baku) and 2% (the taxpayers operating in other regions of Azerbaijan) on the
gross revenue. In that case taxpayers of simplified
tax are exempt from VAT, profit and property taxes.
Professional labour force
Azerbaijan has an extremely high literacy rate of
99.6%. About 6% of labour force is employed in
tourism.
Solid research and development base reinforces the
development of these sectors. A large R&D center, the
National Academy of Sciences with its 28 research institutes ensures the scientific component of economic
development. In order to prepare professionals that
will serve tourism sector Azerbaijan Tourism Institute
(ATI) was established in 2006. The institute provides
specialised courses on 11 tourism-related professions.
Besides that, several VAT schools preparing professionals for tourism industry are operating in Azerbaijan.
Government support and access to finance
Declaring 2011 the Year of Tourism in Azerbaijan shows that,
tourism sector is a priority for the country and an area in which
investments increase and has full support of the Azerbaijani
government. A number of measures are being implemented
aimed at the development of tourism in Azerbaijan. A new “State
Program on the development of tourism in Azerbaijan Republic in
the years of 2010-2014” was adopted recently (President’s Decree
dated 06.04.2010). The program aims at establishment of tourism
infrastructure within high international requirements; establishment of investment and business climate via attracting domestic
and foreign investments; increase of the country’s tourism
competitiveness in world’s tourism market. The program envisages
implementation of wide range of measures for the development
of tourism. In the framework of the program, the Ministry of
Culture and Tourism intends to represent the tourism market as
a competitive environment. A number of activities is planned to
implement for the development of domestic tourism.
The program is implemented in parallel with the “State Program
of socio-economic development of the region of Azerbaijan Republic in 2009-2013”. The overall goal of the Program is to achieve
acceleration of development of the non-oil sector, diversification
of the economy, balanced regional and sustainable socio-economic development, as well as, to ensure decrease of unemployment
and poverty. This program considers implementation of the range
of measures with the special focus on tourism development in the
regions, such as upgrading tourism infrastructure, introducing
advanced methods and standards, introducing reforms, improving
business climate, etc.
Stimulation of business is one of the main components of investw w w. a z p r o m o. a z
ment policy of Azerbaijani government. All the companies registered in Azerbaijan, even with 100% of foreign participation, may
benefit from numerous subsidies, discounts and other privileges
provided by the state.
Besides this, the Government established a strong institutional
mechanism aimed at sustaining economic growth and stimulation
of production and development in non-oil sectors of economy.
One part of this mechanism is Azerbaijan Export & Investment
Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) – a joint Public Private Initiative, established by the Ministry of Economic Development of
Azerbaijan. For more information on AZPROMO please see the
next chapter below. In addition, there are two other major components of the mechanism, in particular Azerbaijan Investment
Company and National Fund for Entrepreneurship Support.
Azerbaijan State Investment Company (ASIC) is the state owned
equity fund, which was established by the Decree of the President
of the Republic of Azerbaijan on 30 March 2006. The main purpose
of ASIC is to support the development of the non-oil sector of the
economy via termed equity injection along with local and foreign
co-investors into the greenfield and brownfield projects on the
territory of Azerbaijan.
National Fund for Entrepreneurship Support (NFES) is established
by the government. The objective of the Fund is support to the
development of entrepreneurship, especially small and medium
entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan and increase of working capacity
of population and provision of financial support. The fund provides
concessionary credits to entrepreneurs in all regions of Azerbaijan
(loan portfolio 218 mln. Azerbaijani manats in 2012). The main
sectors that have been invested and developed by the fund are
production and processing of agricultural and industrial products,
tourism, services and infrastructure development.
29
THE AZERBAIJAN
EXPORT & INVESTMEN
PROMOTION FOUNDAT
(AZPROMO) –
your partner in discovering business opportunities in Azerbaijan.
Night view of Baku,
Baku, Azerbaijan
30
Our mission:
To sustain economic growth by maximizing the flow of
non-oil extraction FDI and the development of export oriented sectors.
NT
DATION
Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion
Foundation (AZPROMO) is a joint publicprivate-initiative, established by the Ministry
of Economic Development of Azerbaijan
in 2003 with the aim to contribute to the
economic development through attracting
foreign investments in the nonoil sectors of
economy and stimulating expansion of country’s exports of non-oil goods to the overseas
markets.
ested in investigating and utilizing investment opportunities in Azerbaijan.
AZPROMO is a unique body in Azerbaijan that
operates as a “one-stop-shop” for assisting
and advising foreign-based companies inter-
We encourage you to discover opportunities
of doing business in and with Azerbaijan
through our dynamic organization!
AZPROMO is a devoted partner for companies
established in Azerbaijan looking to enter foreign markets. Our knowledge of foreign markets and applicable trade regulations along
with a wide network of foreign representations and partners offer good opportunity for
companies to expand their export capacities.
31
Our
services
OUR
ACTIVITIES
32
Information
supply
l Handling invest-
ment inquiries
l Sectoral investment opportunities
l Investment projects
l Legal and business framework for
FDI
Logistics
support
l Fact-finding missions
l to Azerbaijan (visa
facilitation, accommodation, booking
l Country promotion
l Event management
l Investment generation and
services
l Market intelligence and
export services
l Matchmaking and linkages
l Policy advocacy
l Cooperation with international trade and investment
promotion agencies
and transportation)
l Site visits
l Meetings with lo-
cal authorities and
private institutions
Support in
getting
established
l Business start-up
l Identification of
local suppliers and
commercial service
providers
l Project partner
search and contact
l Licenses and
permits
l Liaising with regulators
Aftercare
services
l Investment expansion/re-investment
plans
l Social events for
investors (networking, relationship
building)
l Individual troubleshooting and assistance day-to-day
operational issues
l Information on
changes in business
environment
l Identification of
local suppliers
32 Neftchilar ave., Baku Business Center, Baku, Azerbaijan, AZ 1000
Tel.: (+99412) 598 01 47/48
Fax: (+99412) 598 01 52
E-mail: office@azpromo.az
www.azpromo.az
AZPROMO established by:
Ministry of Economy and Industry of the Republic of Azerbaijan
40, U.Hajibayov Str., “The Government House”, Baku, Azerbaijan, AZ 1000
Tel.: (+99412) 493 88 67
Fax: (+99412) 492 58 95
E-mail: office@economy.gov.az
www.economy.gov.az
designed by farkhad lachinov • www.facebook.com/farkhadlachinov
This publication is prepared by:
Azerbaijan Export & Investment Promotion Foundation