BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 5
By Nazrin Israfilova - Trend:
The economy of Azerbaijan is close to recovery at the pre-pandemic level, the country’s Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov said, Trend reports.
According to Jabbarov, from January through October 2021, GDP grew by 4.9 percent, including non-oil sector by 5.9 percent. Except the construction sector, growth is accelerating in all sectors of the economy.
“According to estimates, we expect economic growth to exceed five percent in 2021. This is significantly higher than the initial forecasts of both international and our organizations,” he noted. “One of the main factors in accelerating economic growth is the non-oil industry. In 2017-2020, the average annual growth rate of value added in the non-oil sector was nearly nine percent, and from January through October 2021 this figure exceeded 20 percent. One of the main reasons for growth in this sector is the activity of industrial zones.”
He pointed out that in the near future, industrial zones, which the Azerbaijani government attaches particular importance to, will act as the basis and driving force of the non-oil industry.
"The share of production in these zones throughout the country grew from 3.2 percent in 2017 to 14.2 percent in just 9 months of 2021. The investments in industrial zones amounted to $6.2 billion, and the share of products manufactured here in exports is growing rapidly,” the minister further said.
“From January through September 2021, the cost of exporting products from industrial zones amounted to $320 million, which is twice as much as in the same period of last year. In general, the export potential of the non-oil sector has shown positive trend,” Jabbarov said.
“From January through October 2021, non-oil exports rose by 42 percent. This is the highest figure in the history of our independence. It’s estimated that the volume of non-oil exports in 2021 will reach $2.6 billion," he added.