1.500 families to use self-employment program by end of 2016

By Azernews

By Amina Nazarli

Roughly 1,500 families will be able to use a program of self-employment in Azerbaijan until the end of this year.

Minister for Labor and Social Protection of Population Salim Muslimov made this statement on September 21.

Muslumov emphasized that in some regions of the country, employment centers’ staff have already examined the unemployment rate, composition of the unemployed and areas, in which they would like to work.

“The International Labor Organization (ILO) immediately began to cooperate with us in this direction, because Azerbaijan is the first country in the world, which began the implementation of program [of self-employment] on such a scale and at the state level,” he said.

ILO will provide a broad support to Azerbaijan in this matter, according to the minister and has already sent its experts so that they conducted training here.

“Some 75 people have already taken place in training. In total the ILO will train 142 people, which, in turn, will provide training to the unemployed,” he said.

 “We will choose approximately 1,500 people who meet our requirements. Within two months, they will receive training and knowledge on how to maintain small and medium business, become familiar with the financial and other business aspects,” Muslumov said.

Only those who will be able to justify their business plan will benefit the program, the minister noted.

“We will provide all participants of the program with all necessary for the business organization. If at the end of the year their business is successful, then we will give them all the materials that they have received for the organization and conduct of business for free. To date, 367 families have already been selected from 19 regions, which are passing training,” he added.

This July, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on additional measures in the field of self-employment.

“We need to create more opportunities for people to ensure their self-employment,” the head of state said at the meeting of Cabinet of Ministers on results of socio-economic development in first half of 2016 and future objectives. “In the near future, we will probably see the results of the first experiment. I think that the self-employment approach should prevail.”

Experts claim that the decree is an important support to the involvement of able-bodied members of low-income families in active labor market and ensuring their self-employment.

To this end, 6 million manats ($3.649 million) have been allocated from the Presidential Reserve Fund to the Ministry.