Azerbaijan, Baku, 11 January /corr. Trend I.Khalilova, S.Aliyev / In 2008, there will be a continuous increase in the minimal salaries and pensions, said Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, during his speech at the meeting of the Azerbaijan's Cabinet of Ministers-dedicated to the results of social-economic development of the country in 2007 and targets of 2008. Despite that the minimal pension was increased by 20%- up to AZN 60, the increase will be continued for the whole year.
At present, the State Social Assistance Program covers 78,000 families. At an average, $100 is provided to each family as assistance.
"Of course we would like to fully liquidate the poverty in Azerbaijan and carry out works in this direction," the State Head said. "Yet there are people who live in bad conditions and the State provides a lot of contributions to them. It demands huge money and that is allocated," the President added.
According to the President, the measures are continuously taken to fight against the poverty. Since 2003, the poverty has decreased from 49% to 16%- as on 1 January 2008.