Media Review February 21, 2019

The significance of the Southern Gas Corridor project, the number of buildings commissioned, and the fight against the shadow economy are the leading topics of today's media.

The Azerbaijan newspaper writes about the global significance of the Southern Gas Corridor project against the backdrop of the fifth meeting of the Advisory Council of this project held in Baku. Gas production from the Shah Deniz field, expansion of the South Caucasus pipeline, and commissioning of TANAP are three project segments in operation. The project participants are 7 states, and a memorandum of understanding was signed with three more states. Work on SGC has been completed by 87%, the author writes.

The website Marja.az writes about multi-family houses that have not been commissioned. Officials claim that the number of such houses is about 400, and experts insist on 800. There are buildings of this kind in the regions.

The deputy head of the State Agency for Safety Control at Construction Sites, Elkhan Asadov, claims that about 270 buildings received a positive opinion. He also stresses that the buildings dangerous for the life of citizens will not be accepted and put into operation.

The newspaper Yeni Musavat writes about combating the shadow economy, discussing this issue with expert Rashad Hasanov. He recalls the recent speech by the Minister of Taxes Mikayil Jabbarov regarding tax evasion.

In 2018, concealment in the amount of 930 million manat was discovered at large wholesale sites. In the network markets it was 122 million manat, and in private medical institutions it was 230 million manat. According to available information, the level of the shadow economy in the country is above 70 percent. In principle, changes in tax legislation were aimed at the intention to reduce the level of the shadow economy. -0----