Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of a new building of Sadarak High School No 2

The teaching staff of the school warmly welcomed the head of state.

President Ilham Aliyev cut the ribbon marking the opening of the school and toured the building.

The head of state was informed that the construction of Sadarak High School No. 2 for 594 pupils began in May of this year and was completed recently. The four-storey building has 33 classrooms. Subject-specific classrooms, as well as the class of military training and the gym, are equipped with necessary visual aids. Also at the disposal of pupils are two classrooms with electronic boards. The school has 31 computers with an Internet connection. The local library stores about 10,000 volumes of literature.

It was indicated that all schools in the autonomous republic are fitted with computers. Schools have received a total of 2,674 computers.

Speaking on behalf of the school staff, teacher Elmira Dadasova stressed the exceptional merits of great leader Heydar Aliyev and President Ilham Aliyev in the current developments in Azerbaijan. She noted that new educational, health and other social facilities are being established in Nakhchivan and elsewhere in the country, which is a good example of the care of the head of state for the people.

While congratulating the school staff, President Ilham Aliyev said:

- I would like to take this wonderful opportunity to heartily congratulate all the teachers of Azerbaijan on the holiday occasion. Teachers are fulfilling a very important mission indeed. They work day and night to educate the future generation, for it to be literate and educated. I very much appreciate the work of teachers. Their work plays a major role in the development of any country. Because a country may be rich in natural resources, it may have other possibilities, i.e. broad financial opportunities, but it will never be able to efficiently use these capabilities without qualified professionals and if the intellectual potential is not high. Therefore, we are converting our natural resources into human capital.

The main direction of our policy is to increase investment in human capital with every passing day. The purpose of establishing high schools and universities is to raise the level of education in Azerbaijan to a level that would suit us. To do this, of course, we need to both build schools and improve the quality of education. We are approaching these issues from two sides. The construction of the school is a beautiful and memorable event in itself. Today I am taking part in the opening of a third school in Nakhchivan. Two schools were opened in Sharur district and one in Sadarak. These are beautiful, bright, spacious schools fitted with modern equipment. There are all conditions for students and teachers here.

At the same time, the focus today is on improving the quality of education. We are very serious about this issue and, hopefully, will soon be able to achieve our goals. In addition, the construction of pre-school institutions, kindergartens and the establishment of vocational schools is in full swing in Azerbaijan. Additional funds have recently been allocated for this purpose from the reserve fund of the President. At the same time, our education expenditure is second biggest in the state budget, next only to defense spending. This shows what policies the Azerbaijani state is pursuing.

We are building a strong state, the foundation of this state was laid by great leader Heydar Aliyev. It is thanks to his hard work, his tireless activities and wise policies that Azerbaijan has managed to reach these great heights today. Only thanks to Heydar Aliyev’s activities did state building in Azerbaijan commence and Azerbaijan is a powerful state today. We are building a modern state, a state where all people can live freely and happily. There are all democratic freedoms in Azerbaijan. There are stability, public and political order and security in Azerbaijan. If we look at the statistics, we can see that Azerbaijan has the lowest crime rate. Why?! Because public and political situation here is positive and the atmosphere is great. Development processes are observed throughout the country.

I have attended the opening of a beautiful central hospital in Sadarak district today. Now I am attending the opening of this school. These are important social facilities which will serve our people. We must ensure that such great initiatives are put forward and implemented in every part of the country, especially in Sadarak district because your are right opposite the enemy. You are on the border itself. The people of Sadarak, all people of Nakhchivan have fought and shed blood for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity.

We remember those years too well. After Azerbaijani lands were occupied, Armenian barbarians and nationalists were eyeing the prospect for taking over Nakhchivan too and even attempted to seize it. It was only thanks to the strong will of the people of Nakhchivan and the policies of great leader Heydar Aliyev that Nakhchivan could be protected. The enemy wasn’t allowed to set its foot here, it was suppressed.

There is a ceasefire now. The war is not over yet. Only the first stage is. The war will be over when a peace treaty is signed. And the peace treaty can only be signed when Azerbaijan’s occupied lands are vacated and territorial integrity restored. Nagorno-Karabakh is Azerbaijan’s historical land. Azerbaijanis have lived and worked in and around Nagorno-Karabakh for centuries. All historical names and place-names are of Azerbaijani origin. This is our land. This injustice has lasted for about 20 years. But it can’t last much longer.

Azerbaijan can resolve any issue in any way today. We had neither an army nor a leadership in the early 90s. There was treachery. If Heydar Aliyev hadn’t come to power in 1993, we could have encountered even greater woes. Azerbaijan was falling apart and we could have lost our independence.

Azerbaijan is a powerful state and has reached a level incomparable for Armenia. Suffice it to say that our economy is 7-8 times bigger than Armenia’s. Our military expenditure is equal to Armenia’s total budget. These positive trends will be continued. Economic development, solution of political issues, international law – all these are strengthening our stance. Let’s take demographic issues. Azerbaijan has a population of 9 million people and this figure will gradually increase. We must grow in number. Our population will reach 10 million people in several years.

In other words, natural processes show and I have no doubt that Azerbaijan will restore its territorial integrity and free its occupied territories. Azerbaijan will restore its sovereign rights over all of its territories currently under occupation. We must work hard to near that day. Azerbaijan’s successful development is up to us. The opening of this school and other important social facilities in Nakhchivan today shows our strength again.

I wanted to share with you my feelings on this remarkable occasion. Besides, I would like to congratulate all Azerbaijani teachers on their holiday. Congratulations again on the opening of this beautiful school!

In conclusion, a picture was taken.