Azerbaijani-Polish Business Forum was held in Baku

The Azerbaijani-Polish Business Forum has been held at the Baku business center.

The Business Forum was joined by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski.

The objective of the forum, which was attended by around 20 Polish business people engaged in agriculture, food, finance, industrial production, banking, insurance and other sectors, has been to develop cooperation between Azerbaijani and Polish business circles using the economic potential of both countries, and to bolster bilateral trade.

The heads of state made opening remarks at the forum.

Remarks by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev

- Dear Mr. President,

Dear guests, ladies and gentlemen!

Let me cordially salute you all. It is the day of an official visit of the Polish President to Azerbaijan. I can say that the visit has been very successful and I am sure that the talks held and the suggestions made this morning will determine a long-term development strategy of Azerbaijani-Polish relations.

Our relations have a great history and are diverse. Of course, we have had a broad exchange on economic relations today. I think there are great prospects for cooperation in the economic and business sector. Business circles are first attracted to politically favorable countries. Azerbaijani business people have the same approach, and when political relations are at a high level, business cooperation can certainly be successful too. We are very interested in public bodies and businesses being in regular touch with each other. The key objective of this business forum is to learn each other better, explore and examine each other’s opportunities. Of course, a serious analysis should be conducted, and I am sure that specific business projects will eventually emerge. The implementation of such projects will strengthen our economic relations and benefit our overall initiatives a lot.

We would very much like Polish companies to be represented in Azerbaijan more broadly. There are opportunities to do that. According to my information, there have been presentations of different projects here, economic indicators of Azerbaijan and Poland have been demonstrated. So I think that the existing situation has become clearer for the business people in attendance. Azerbaijan has taken significant steps to improve the business environment. The policy of economic liberalization is conducted, businesses are strengthening in Azerbaijan. Major, small and medium-sized companies are stepping up their activities. The private sector accounts for 80 per cent of Azerbaijan’s GDP. If we consider that there was practically no private sector in Azerbaijan 20 years ago, I think this is a very good indicator. As a result of political and economic reforms, a liberal economy has emerged in Azerbaijan over a short period of time. Market economy principles have become effective. This has enabled us to significantly expand our economic opportunities.

Of course, in the early years of our independence the oil and gas sector was the driving force of our economic development. This is only natural and is still the case nowadays. At the same time, thanks to our energy initiatives we have succeeded in developing the non-oil sector. Today the Azerbaijani economy is diverse. This is exactly why we did not encounter serious difficulties when the oil price sharply plummeted two to three years ago. In fact, even when the oil price dropped four to five times the Azerbaijani economy grew by 8-9 per cent. And that was achieved thanks to the oil sector. This is our policy, and we will try to further develop the non-oil sector in the years ahead. I can say that state programs are playing a crucial role in that. We are now in the process of implementing a second state program since 2004. The interest of foreign investors and their investments in Azerbaijan have also played a major role. Foreign investment was particularly instrumental in our economic development in the mid-1990s.

We are still trying to attract foreign investment. For the volume of direct foreign investment Azerbaijan is traditionally a CIS leader. Over $16 billion was invested in our economy last year alone. Most of the investment was domestic, but foreign investment also holds an important place. Foreign investment in Azerbaijan is securely protected – this, among other factors, is ensured by national legislation. Today there is foreign investment in the non-oil sector. Foreign investment is playing a part in agricultural development, it has a large share in the development of tourism. I can say that the development of tourism in Azerbaijan is a priority issue. A total of six five-star hotels are scheduled for commissioning in Baku alone this year, and this is an indicator in itself.

Of course, we would like to see Polish companies as investors. At the same time, Polish companies can take an active part in infrastructure projects funded by various sources in Azerbaijan, including public funds. I am sure this has been spoken about today.

At the same time, Azerbaijani companies are already accessing foreign markets as well. This is the policy of our state. While paying attention to the development of the private sector, we want private companies to access foreign markets. Azerbaijan’s public companies have also started to invest heavily in foreign markets, and this investment already accounts for billions of dollars.

The revenue from the development of Azerbaijan’s energy resources is distributed fairly and serves the country's economic development. At the same time, the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan is investing in foreign markets, and I believe that these opportunities should also be considered.

Of course, as presidents, we can only give advice to private companies and, through our own activities, create favorable conditions for mutual business interests to further increase. We are trying to do that. I do hope that this business forum will yield results in the near future and Polish-Azerbaijani economic relations will develop rapidly.

As I have indicated, we in Azerbaijan are attaching great importance to the development of the non-oil sector. Azerbaijan’s agriculture, tourism, information and communication technologies are rapidly developing. The number of Internet users in Azerbaijan has reached 50 per cent. Next year we will put our first telecommunications satellite into the orbit. We have ambitious plans in various other areas.

But at the same time, the energy sector is traditionally very important to us, and cooperation in the oil and gas industry plays a significant role in the development of Polish-Azerbaijani relations. We have held an extensive exchange of views on this today. I am sure that our companies will put forward new initiatives in this area in the near future.

Azerbaijan has major oil and gas fields that serve the people of Azerbaijan. At the same time, these resources and projects in this area are of great significance to regional cooperation. Azerbaijan is a very reliable partner in terms of energy policy. We have a format of cooperation with the European Union in this direction, and in January this year the EU and Azerbaijan signed the Declaration “On the Southern Gas Corridor”. Today, we have confirmed gas reserves of 2.2 trillion cubic meters, which allows Azerbaijan the opportunity to provide itself, neighboring and European countries with natural gas at the required level for at least 100 years to come. Of course, we are trying to deepen our cooperation in this field. There are certain results already, and I am confident that the private sector will also join in this work.

I want to repeat that we are attaching great importance to the development of Polish-Azerbaijani relations, and the private sector is playing a special role in the development of these relations. I want to express my confidence again that this business forum will yield wonderful results in the near future.

Thank you for your attention.

Remarks by Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski

- Dear ladies and gentlemen!

I want to thank the hosting party, President Ilham Aliyev in particular, for the opportunity to address this forum together. As you can see, two Presidents, the Presidents of Poland and Azerbaijan, are addressing the forum. You represent business circles, and we stand in front of you. In essence, this is a sign of a new era.

Azerbaijan and Poland have covered the same road in recent years, and we are making every effort to use the newfound freedom properly. We can see that activities in present-day Azerbaijan are carried out at the proper level, and they mainly focus on developing business prospects. In essence, we are the only European Union country which has not experienced any difficulties for 20 years, there was no recession in our country. All our indicators have only increased. If you look at our economic indicators, you will see that they are different to other EU countries in a positive way. We take note of these economic achievements also because Poland currently has presidency in the European Union. This shows that our consistent steps serve the well-being of all the peoples.

I am very pleased that the relations between Azerbaijan and Poland are developing properly. We often hold meetings at the political level, at the highest level. We can see that there are further opportunities to define new areas of our activities.

Mr. President, you have mentioned here that the energy sector is still playing a very important part. This suggests that we must learn and prioritize other directions of cooperation, and they should mainly serve the development of Polish business in Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani business in Poland. Countries that do not go beyond one sector usually face problems. Therefore, we must try to work in the areas that would be new, go in new directions, explore new horizons and new opportunities. Therefore, the Polish delegation includes representatives of organizations that provide support for the business sector. There are representatives of the private sector, those of the federation of employers. These people take very brave and major steps forward, they know that if you put in effort and achieve great opportunities and financial resources, they shouldn’t be wasted. They want to develop that. If we speak about the future today, we must pay special attention to small and medium-sized businesses.

So by ensuring the participation of these representatives in today's forum, we want the great work being done with small and medium-sized businesses to be visible, we want this work to be done between Poland and Azerbaijan. Today, we are acquiring entirely new opportunities, and all this, in essence, is a symbol of a great leap forward, a step forward.

The economy of Azerbaijan has taken a great step forward. This applies not only to the energy sector. We also know that Azerbaijan is creating new opportunities in new areas. We believe that this serves a further strengthening of the wonderful relations between Azerbaijan and Poland. We want to expand the cooperation not only between Azerbaijan and Poland, but also between the European Union and Azerbaijan. All this will be based on new business contacts, business relations. Of course, this will become a new source of our cooperation. There are new areas ahead of us.
Perhaps not many people will know that Azerbaijani crude oil is already supplied to Polish refineries in the Czech Republic. One million tons of oil is refined every year. This process is carried out at the enterprises owned by Polish capital. We are trying to further increase the supplies of Azerbaijani crude.

This is part of our cooperation, but we want to cooperate in other areas too. I know that you will be holding talks and discussions today and tomorrow. There are Polish companies that already operate in Azerbaijan. Naturally, the final decision is not made by me, but by the business community. But I want to say for my part that we must further strengthen not only economic but also political contacts between Poland and Azerbaijan, facilitate the work of the business community.

I can see a representative of the airline here. Flights to Baku will start in a year. According to the Polish Ministry, it is already possible to operate flights between Warsaw and Baku. The sooner that happens, the better because in this case we will show that these contacts, these business relations are intended to further strengthen the ties between Poland and Azerbaijan. In essence, these are the results achieved by Polish and Azerbaijani businessmen.

Thank you very much for your attention.

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After the business forum, President Ilham Aliyev and President Bronislaw Komorowski went on a walkabout in the Seaside National Park and met a group of Polish students there. The heads of state were informed that in January-May this year the Ministry of Youth and Sport in cooperation with Azerbaijani Embassies in foreign countries conducted a competition of essays on the subject of “What do I know about Azerbaijan?” among foreign students. The competition was joined by students representing nine countries, including Poland. The topics of the competition included nationwide leader Heydar Aliyev, realities of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijan’s economic development, language, national traditions, culture, role in international politics, etc.

The jury established in the countries represented in the competition selected 75 winners. They are students of over 40 universities, academies, lyceums and colleges. Eleven winners representing Poland are already in Baku touring the sights of Baku, museums, historical monuments and conversing with people. Polish students have traveled to Lahij, Gabala and Shaki Districts and the Nakhchivan AR.

Students had their pictures taken with the Presidents of the two countries.

During the walkabout in the Seaside National Park, the President of Poland was informed of the landscaping and reconstruction work under way in Baku. It was indicated that the reconstruction of one of Europe’s biggest seaside boulevards started several years ago and completely changed the appearance of the place. National style is skillfully combined with international experience here. The amazing Baku boulevard lends special beauty to the Azerbaijani capital and is the most popular place of recreation for the people of Baku and foreign guests. Work on the expansion of the Seaside National Park, which is more than 100 years old, is still ongoing. In general, special attention is being paid to the reconstruction of parks and gardens in Baku in recent years. Of course, in addition to landscaping the city, the key objective is to create comfortable conditions for people’s recreation.