Baku, Azerbaijan, May 30
Trend:
Another office of Friend of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (Friend of SMEs) opened in the Azerbaijani city of Sheki today, Trend reports referring to the Agency for the Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) under Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Economy.
Thus, two offices of the Friend of SMEs are currently functionining in the Sheki-Zagatala economic region, namely in Gabala and Sheki.
An event dedicated to the office opening and held at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Sheki with the organizational support of the SME Development Agency, was attended by representatives of relevant structures and entrepreneurs of the Sheki-Zagatala economic region.
Addressing the event, Elkhan Usubov, Head of the Executive Power of Sheki District, noted that Friend of SMEs is a tool, which will greatly support entrepreneurs. Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the Board of the SME Development Agency, provided information about the Agency’s activities and the Friend of SMEs objectives. He emphasized that this initiative is one of the important projects formed on the basis of the platform of cooperation between the state and entrepreneurs in accordance with the strategic course of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev entitled “The state is the best partner for the entrepreneur”.
It was noted that, in the cities and districts where the Friend of SMEs operates, this mechanism helps to identify and implement the initiatives and potential of small and medium-sized enterprises, to provide support for the creation and development of SMEs at all stages, and to protect the rights of entrepreneurs. The activities of Friends of SMEs are planned to be carried out in other cities and regions of the economic region.
During the event, a presentation covering activities and services of the Friends of SMEs was held. It was followed by question and answer session.
Then the participants were acquainted with the office of the Friend of SMEs at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Sheki. The office is equipped with the necessary equipment and training materials, and all conditions have been created here for the provision of numerous agency services to entrepreneurs. As noted in the ministry’s report, the “SME Volunteers” service will operate in the same office.
Currently, Friends of SMEs are operating in 13 districts and cities of the country.
