A Meeting of the ASK Presidium took place

A meeting of the Presidium of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations (ASK) of the Republic of Azerbaijan was held on 18th November 2022. During the meeting, the report on activities of the Confederation for the past 9 months of 2022 was delivered and other issues listed in the agenda were discussed.

In his opening statement, Mr. Mammad Musayev, President of the Confederation, noted that the third week of November of each year, is celebrated as Global Entrepreneurship Week all over the world including Azerbaijan, and that ASK held a number of events during this week.

He mentioned the importance of the responsibilities to be assumed by the entrepreneurs with regard to the restoration of Karabakh, noting this within the context of the accelerated reconstruction works being currently undertaken under the leadership of His Excellency Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the territories liberated from the illegal occupation.

He emphasized the importance of representing our country at international and interregional economic forums and also touched upon enhancing the incentivisation mechanisms for promotion of Azerbaijan products abroad.

Musayev stated that the joint activities with the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry were carried out in a more intensive and planned manner and the establishment of the Turkic Investment Fund was one of their biggest success stories.

In the presentation of ASK it was noted the increase in activities relating to the protection of entrepreneurs’ rights and in the establishment of dialogue between public and private sectors. Thus, during the first three quarters of 2022, the Confederation held meetings and events covering various topics between governmental bodies and entrepreneurs, and proposals were submitted to the government based on the applications received from the commissions representing various sectors.

In 2022 ASK managed to increase the dialogue between the public and private sectors through increasing their representation in rural areas among local entrepreneurs by having found delegation structures in a total of 52 regions. Additionally, the Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan increased their representation activities aimed at promoting Azerbaijani products in foreign markets, enhance the investment environment, and forge relations with Azerbaijani businessmen working abroad. Currently, 22 representatives of the Confederation are operating in 26 foreign countries.

Khagan Hummetzade, Deputy Secretary General of ASK, spoke about the General Collective Agreement for the period 2020-2022, which is due to expire imminently. He also spoke about the activities of the tripartite commission and those of cooperation councils as well as the results of the dialogue between public and private sectors. He noted that the entrepreneurs’ views and suggestions were collected in order to take into consideration their interest in the preparation and drafting of a new General Collective Agreement.

Vice presidents and members of the Presidium also spoke during the meeting.

The Presidium adopted the report by vote.