NFES’s allocations for 1Q17 hits 63M manats

By Azernews

By Sara Israfilbayova

The National Fund for Entrepreneurship Support (NFES) under the Economy Ministry of Azerbaijan issued concessional loans in the amount of 63.3 million manats ($37.2 million) to 690 entrepreneurs in the first half of 2017.

The Economy Ministry reported that these loans will help to create more than 2,300 new workplaces.

Executive Director of the NFES Shirzad Abdullayev said that most of the issued loans (76 percent) fall on the regions and the remaining 24 percent were issued to entrepreneurs from Baku.

Within the framework of a business forum held in the Tezekend village of Ismayilly region, entrepreneurs received preferential loans amounted to 1.5 million manats ($881,200). These funds will be directed to the development of livestock, the construction of a health-improving center and other areas.

In total, entrepreneurs of the Mountainous-Shirvan economic region received concessional loans worth 69.3 million manats ($40.7 million) for the implementation of almost 1,900 investment projects so far.

The forum participants also observed the agropark, located in the Kurdmashi village of the Ismayilly region.

They were informed that the first stage of works in the agropark, located in the Khachmaz region is over. In addition, agro parks are being created in Samukh, Goranboy, Aghjabadi, Shabran, Salyan, Shamkir, Shamakhi, Fizuli and Jalilabad regions.

The Economy Ministry allocated to the Fund concessional loans in the amount of 76.1 million manats ($44.7 million) for the creation of these agro-parks.

The NFES allocated 190 million manats ($111.6 million) for financing projects of local business entities in 2016.

Encouraging business doing in the country is one of the priorities for the Azerbaijani government, which supports entrepreneurs through creating necessary conditions for the development of a healthy business environment in the country and providing concessional loans.

President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on additional measures to encourage investment on January 18, 2016. The decree was signed to expand investment activities, improve business environment, increase industrial production, as well as create a mechanism and normative legal acts related to encouragement of investments, in accordance with the action plan for realization of the “2015-2020 State Program for Development of Industry in Azerbaijan.”

Azerbaijan businessmen became eligible to get the investment incentives documents following the approval of amendments proposed to the Tax Code of the country.

Under the investment incentives document, half of the revenue of an individual entrepreneur, profits of legal entity are exempted from income tax for seven years. Import of equipment for the implementation of the projects is also exempt of VAT and customs duties.

Moreover, the state refunds 3-6 percent of the customs value of goods to non-oil exporters within the framework of mechanisms on promoting exports of non-oil products.

Earlier, Deputy Economy Minister of Azerbaijan, Sahil Babayev said that some 1.3 million manats ($763,700) have been returned to Azerbaijani exporters since early 2017.

It is also planned to create the Agency of Small and Medium Enterprises and the Guarantee Credit Fund in 2017-2018. Similar agencies already operate in Europe, the UK, the USA, China, Singapore and other countries, stimulating the development of small and medium-sized businesses.