Expert Economist: Whole Economy Suffered. However...

Baku/24.03.21/Turan: The pandemic has affected all economic spheres of Azerbaijan, while tourism, construction and transport have suffered the most. This was stated by economist-expert Rashad Hasanov in the release of the Turan program Difficult Question dated March 24, 2021 on the topic "The impact of the pandemic on the economy of Azerbaijan."

The economist noted that in 2020 the country's economy contracted by 4.3%, and noted that this is an officially announced figure, in reality, the reduction is 7-9%. In his opinion, due to the politicization of statistics in the country, it is not correct. According to him, the recession has manifested itself throughout the economy.

He noted that local and international tourism in Azerbaijan has decreased by 2 times, and in some cases by 4 times.

The expert adds that with regard to transportation, both domestically and internationally, although there were no obstacles to the transportation of goods, the purchasing power of the country decreased, and the trade turnover decreased due to the decrease in economic activity.

According to him, this decline was somewhere up to 20%.

According to the expert, in connection with the pandemic in Azerbaijan, the cessation of the movement of the subway and buses on weekends has created problems in this area. This reduced the passenger traffic in the country by 45-55%. And the decrease in cargo turnover created restrictions on the export of products to the market.

As for the elimination of the damage caused by the pandemic to the country as a whole, the expert economist believes that for this, comprehensive reforms should be carried out, the course of liberalization in the economy should be strengthened.

“If these reforms are successful, if they are supported by institutional reforms, then the damage can be repaired, but if this does not happen, then the elimination of the crisis will take a long time. There is also construction and restoration work in the territories liberated from the occupation. Therefore, in order to attract foreign investment to Azerbaijan in the economic sphere, real reforms must be carried out. In short, the government's views on this area must change. Without this, there can be no reform," Hasanov said.

As for social protection of the population, Hasanov says that, despite the fact that the government imposed restrictions, it did not go to a complete blocking of business activity, saying that it would not pay a lump sum of 190 manats to the unemployed.

He says that protecting the population from a pandemic lies in providing quality food, and in world practice, a system of food cards is used, which is a way to provide the poor with the necessary parts of the population. According to him, Azerbaijan should apply this practice, and this is important.   -05B-