Media Review September 17, 2019

The transformation of teaching into a competitive profession, the absence of Azerbaijani universities in the lists of the best universities in the world, the dependence of the state budget on oil, and a sharp increase in car imports are the topics of today's media.

The newspaper Azerbaijan writes about the profession of a teacher, its role and significance. Over 150 thousand teachers have had their load increased by one and a half times and salary by 2 times. Since September 1, teachers' salaries have been increased by 20%, thus, their salaries have reached 600 manat. Approximately 5,000 teachers receive more than 1,000 manat, the author writes. Over the past 5 years, over 20 thousand teachers have been hired by schools.

The Yeni Sabah.az website writes that Azerbaijani universities are not on the list of the best universities in the world. However, among the 500 best universities in the world, 2 are universities of Turkey. In this list there is a Kazakhstani university, and Russian universities. One of the factors influencing the world ranking is the number of foreign students studying. For example, in Turkey there are almost 200 thousand of them. In Azerbaijan, there are 3,700. The second factor is providing students with a hostel. Today, 164 thousand students study in 54 universities in Azerbaijan. Of these, only 1.2% are provided with a hostel. The third factor is the international recognition of research. In Azerbaijan, this factor is more local in nature, and participation in the international arena is at a zero level; there are no scientific references to our scientists.

The website Modern.az writes that Azerbaijan cannot eliminate its dependence on oil. The website provides the reasoning of the deputy Vahid Ahmedov. He notes that the explosions at two plants in Saudi Arabia have led to an increase in oil prices by 20%. However, this phenomenon is temporary, the deputy believes. He also approves the fact that Azerbaijan"s budget for 2020 was drawn up on the basis of oil price of $ 55 per barrel. The deputy also notes that even $ 50 could be taken as a basis, which is even more expedient. But the country cannot reduce its dependence on oil. Currently, the budget is 57-60% dependent on oil.

The website Marja.az writes about the increase in car imports to Azerbaijan. For 8 months of 2019, 26,695 cars were imported. This is 1.9 times more than in the same period last year. Thus, in January-August, 24,088 cars, 246 buses, and 2,262 trucks were brought into the country. -0-