Media Review for December 25

The newspaper Azerbaijan quotes the statement of the chairman of the National Bank Elman Rustamov about the absence of grounds for the devaluation of the manat. According to him, the presented forecasts for the state budget for 2021 are justified. 2020 did not promise positive forecasts from the very beginning. "The COVID-19 disease that began at the beginning of the year has not spared global commodity relations, as a result of which a number of economic problems have arisen. All over the world, the cost of oil this year ranged from $ 16 to $ 69 per barrel. In general, the cost of oil amounted to $ 43, which is 33% less than in 2019. Despite all these difficulties, this year the balance of payments has been preserved,” Rustamov said.

He recalled that the foreign exchange reserve remained stable, macroeconomic stability was also ensured, and the inflation rate dropped. There are enough financial resources in the country, this will also provide an opportunity to resolve issues related to the budget deficit, and there are no grounds for the devaluation of the manat, Rustamov assured.

The website Yenisabah.az writes about the increased level of bribery in healthcare and criticizes the activities of TƏBİB. Journalist Gulu Maharramli believes that this structure does not live up to expectations, coordination has weakened, the workload on hospitals and the ambulance service has increased, and bribes are growing.

In general, the health care system is in a deplorable state, despite the presence of knowledgeable and selfless doctors.

The same deplorable situation takes place in the issue of drug sales. It seems that the feeling of compassion in people has disappeared, as well as hope for a vaccine and an immediate response from the government, Maharramli said.

The website Redaktor.az discusses with the military expert Ramil Mammadov the possibility of buying S-400 from Russia by Azerbaijan. Despite the fact that the territory of Azerbaijan is not so large, there is still a need to strengthen the air defense system. The expert cites the example of rocket attacks during the Second Karabakh War on Azerbaijani cities, which resulted in the deaths of civilians. As for the possible purchase of the S-400 anti-aircraft missile system, there is currently no need for this, he said.

The website Müsavat.com gives the opinion of experts on the state budget regarding the country's budget adopted for 2021. The author reminds that budget revenues for next year will amount to 25 billion 427.0 million manats. Compared to 2020, this is more by 1 billion 303.0 million manats or 5.4%. In 2021, revenues from the non-oil sector are planned at 28 billion manats.

To ensure the implementation of the budget, economic activity must be restored in the country. We need a lot of financial support for small and medium-sized businesses, which the year 2020 simply knocked down. Experts also believe that the 2021 budget is difficult to fulfill without devaluation. The government wants to go for internal borrowing in the amount of 2 billion manats.

Tax revenue will hardly increase next year. At the same time, the fiscal deficit projected for next year at 7 billion manats did not arise even in 2015, which went down in history as the most difficult year of the last decade. Then the deficit amounted to 2 billion manats.