Press Review - 14.07.17

The results of reforms in the non-oil sector, issues of gender equality, the inability to curb inflation, and the implementation of the self-employment program are the leading topics of today's press.

The Azerbaijan writes that the reforms give a real result and assess the level of this result. The author reminds that the reforms were envisaged to eliminate the crisis that occurred in 2015 after the devaluation of the manat. The article states that in the first 6 months of 2017 there was growth in the non-oil sector and increase in the foreign exchange stock. Exports increased by 36%, 27% of which fell on the non-oil sector, and imports decreased by 15%, and the surplus made up $ 1.9 bn.

The Echo has published an article entitled "Men and Women: How Much Are They Paid in Azerbaijan?" According to the ILO, over the past two decades, the number of women workers has increased by more than 200 million and exceeded 1.2 bn. The gap in employment levels among men and women has also decreased accordingly. At the same time, despite the increasing role of women in the world economy, their efforts are not sufficiently rewarded. The situation is similar in Azerbaijan. However, officials of the state also admit this. However, in Azerbaijan no employer will pay women less than men for the same work. We have other problems related to working women. For example, some types of work are considered to be traditionally female, and they are very low-paid - for example, dishwashers, who are paid a penny for their work.

The Novoye Vremya has published an article entitled "The Cabinet Powerless before Inflation". Today, against the backdrop of encouraging information about the support by the foreign creditors of the plan for restructuring the debts of the International Bank of Azerbaijan amounting to $ 3.3 billion, there is also sad news about the growth of inflation in the country. Prices for consumer goods and tariffs for services in Azerbaijan in January-June of 2017 increased by 13.9% compared to the corresponding indicator of the previous year. According to the State Statistics Committee, during this period, food products rose in price by 18.1%, non-food products - by 12.4%, and tariffs for paid services rendered to the population - by 9.4%. Another major factor influencing the growth of inflation is monopoly in the economy. Monopolies initially exclude competition in the markets.

The Bizim Yol shares the assumptions about the elimination of social targeted assistance, since its place will have to be taken by the self-employment program. The program will start with the funds allocated from the Reserve Fund of the President of Azerbaijan. The program will initially cover 5-10 thousand families. The newspaper discusses this topic with MP Vahid Ahmedov. -0--