Baku, Azerbaijan, June 3
By Emin Aliyev - Trend
International Monetary Fund (IMF) has held consultations with Azerbaijan on Article IV of the IMF's Articles of Agreement for 2014.
IMF Executive Board approved the Article IV Mission's assessment without any discussions, according to a message from the fund.
"Azerbaijani government's recent achievements give impetus to the country's goal of becoming a dynamic and developing market. The recent agreements in the gas sector will help to turn Azerbaijan into a strategic supplier of gas to the European market. Moreover, the successful debut placement of sovereign Eurobonds, carried out amid market turbulence in the region, is an evidence of investors' confidence. This vote of confidence, along with a favorable medium and high oil prices, gives the opportunity to keep the recent progress in the changing macroeconomic policy course and to take decisive steps on improvement of management and business climate. The activities in these areas will have crucial significance in strengthening the sustainable and diversified growth," according to the IMF message.
The IMF Article IV Mission visited Baku in March.
These consultations are held annually on a regular basis.
IMF's Articles of Agreement were adopted at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944.
Azerbaijan joined IMF on September 18, 1992.
During the years of cooperation with the fund, Azerbaijan attracted IMF's loans worth $577.3 million for realizing six various programs as part of economic reforms.
The cooperation between IMF and Azerbaijan was particularly intensive between 1995 and 2005.
Throughout these years, Azerbaijan often enjoyed IMF's consulting and financial assistance to support the government's economic programs.
IMF office was opened in Baku in 1992, and despite the fact that its staff has been reduced since 2009, the fund is still an important partner of Azerbaijani government.
The cooperation between Azerbaijan and IMF also played an important role during the global economic and financial crisis.