Ilham Aliyev attended a ceremony to mark the 90th birthday anniversary of Academician Zarifa Aliyeva

A ceremony marking the 90th birthday anniversary of the outstanding scientist and ophthalmologist, Academician Zarifa Aliyeva, has been held at the Azerbaijan State Music Theater.

The ceremony was attended by President Ilham Aliyev.

The head of state made a speech at the ceremony.

Speech by President Ilham Aliyev

- Dear ladies and gentlemen,

Distinguished guests!

I cordially salute all of you. I cordially salute all the guests who have come to Azerbaijan to participate in today's anniversary event. Welcome to Azerbaijan!

Zarifa Aliyeva was a great doctor and a great scientist. As President, I have signed an order to conduct her 90th birthday anniversary at state level. Different activities have been held in accordance with the order. These events have had a great deal of sense because the events and symposia have analyzed the processes taking place in the ophthalmic science and expressed some very valuable ideas. These events have made a contribution to ophthalmology.

Zarifa Aliyeva was a great doctor in the true sense of the word. She has made a valuable contribution to Azerbaijan’s ophthalmological school and carried out immense activity to train young professionals. At the same time, her laboratories operated at enterprises where the production process had an adverse impact on people’s eyesight. On the one hand, these laboratories studied the impact of harmful processes on human health and, on the other, organized the treatment of patients.

As a scientist, Zarifa Aliyeva managed to achieve a lot. Her works and monographs have not lost their relevance to this day. As a scientist, she was elected a full member of the Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan and received the Averbach Award, the highest award of the Soviet Union in the field of ophthalmology.

In all her activities, in everything she did she relied on the human factor. She was a qualified doctor and, at the same time, a very good-natured person. A combination of these two factors has to be present in all doctors. A doctor must be a professional and serve the people. At the same time, a doctor has to be good-natured. Zarifa Aliyeva had thoughts and papers on this subject. She had very valuable thoughts on the ethical conduct of doctors.

I think that these thoughts should serve as guidelines for each doctor even today.

Zarifa Aliyeva was the wife of great leader Heydar Aliyev. She always stood by him and supported him in everything. The atmosphere and the environment in our family, the relationship between the parents certainly had an educational effect on us. In other words, we received education in the family seeing the relations between our parents. In the 1970s, at a time when Heydar Aliyev held the position of first secretary in Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev’s wife could certainly have a variety of privileges and benefits. But Zarifa Aliyeva was a very simple woman and never showed that she was the wife of Heydar Aliyev, the first secretary. She was always surrounded by ordinary people. She was very modest.

I want to say again that she never showed through word or deed that she had some special status in society. And this is natural. In fact, that is the way it should be. But we know that in many cases this is not the case. People possessing a certain status or their relatives claim some special privileges for themselves. The actions and behavior of Zarifa Aliyeva in this respect should also serve as an example. Zarifa Aliyeva was a very talented, well-educated and highly cultured individual. She was talented not only in her profession. She was a widely talented woman in general. And for some people she was, as they say, the last hope. People she did not even know used to come up to her at work with a variety of requests and complaints. And she tried to help everyone. The requests from these people were passed on to my father, and the vast majority of those issues were resolved. So she always cherished the dream of serving and helping people.

Of course, her unforgettable image is still very dear to me. At the same time, Zarifa Aliyeva had very high standards of conduct. Sincerity, kindness to people, as well as high culture and benevolence – she had a combination of all these great qualities. Zarifa Aliyeva was a true intellectual. She personified all the positive qualities of the Azerbaijani woman.
Along with that, she was a very talented and a well-rounded talented individual. She was very fond of music. She could skillfully play any melody, any song on the piano without the notes. She loved the theater very much.

I remember going to Azerbaijani theaters many times and watching all the performances together with her in the 1970s. There were performances we watched together several times.

She loved this theater too. At that time it was called the Theatre of Musical Comedy, and we came here almost every week. There was not a play we did not see. There were performances we saw a few times. Perhaps the fact that Zarifa Aliyeva’s birthday anniversary is celebrated at this completely renovated theater today is quite symbolic.
Parents and the mother are dear and sacred to everyone. And this is natural. Everyone cherishes the fond memories of their loved ones. The name of Zarifa Aliyeva has been perpetuated. The street is named after her. The street she lived in bears her name. The ophthalmology center to which she has made a great contribution bears her name, and there is a monument to her opposite the center. Of course, her memory and her image live on in the hearts of those who knew her.

I am very happy that I had a mother such as Zarifa Aliyeva. But, unfortunately, we lost her too early. She passed away prematurely and could have done a lot more.

But this is life and no-one can say when and what will happen.

While conducting anniversary events today, we at the same cast a glance at the work carried out in our country in the field of health again. We have to take into account that some outstanding scientists and doctors are among our guests today.

In recent years, a lot has been done to improve the health care system in Azerbaijan. Reforms have been conducted. The material infrastructure of health care has been significantly improved.

Suffice it to say that more than 500 medical facilities have been built or renovated in Azerbaijan over the last 10 years. It is now possible to receive qualified medical services both in Baku and all the districts of Azerbaijan. In Baku, all our major medical institutions have either been rebuilt or renovated.

The Ophthalmology Center has been rebuilt, and now it is a world-class center. New buildings of the Cancer Center have been built. The Urological Hospital, the Neurosurgery and Surgery Centers, the Perinatal Center, the Thalassemia Center, the former hospital named after Semashko, which is now called the clinical hospital, have been reconstructed. The Central Clinical Hospital has been restored. A new large building of the hospital is now under construction.

Children's hospitals have been rebuilt. In other words, the work carried out in Baku in recent years has greatly enhanced the material and technical logistics of the health care system. The Baku Health Center currently under construction will bring together several major hospitals. We will celebrate the opening of the Baku Health Center before the end of this year.

At the same time, the process of establishment and construction of health facilities in the regions is also under way. A diagnostic center or a central district hospital has either been built or renovated in every city. Currently, renovation work is under way in the hospitals of seven cities. The goal has been set of providing top quality medical services in every community, in every city and in every region of Azerbaijan in one to two years. Azerbaijan imports the most advanced medical equipment. In other words, the government is doing all it can for its part. Suffice it to say that health care costs have increased 11 times over the last 10 years. The salaries of doctors have increased six times, even though the current level of wages cannot satisfy us. The government is now working on a more effective solution of these issues in the future. In other words, the salaries will be continuously increased. But we see this trend. This is a very positive trend.

This dynamics corresponds to the overall development of Azerbaijan. At the same time, we clearly see the manifestations of public policies here. The focus of our policy, as I have repeatedly said, is the human factor, the citizens of Azerbaijan. Citizens of Azerbaijan should be healthy. The younger generation should grow up healthy. To do this, first of all, it is necessary to provide qualified medical services.

We have grown stronger in economic terms. Let me repeat that since citizens of Azerbaijan are in the focus and at the center of our policy, we have attracted financial resources. However, this is not just limited to the attraction of financial resources. At the same time, professionalism should also increase. We need to do even more in the area of personnel training. At present, this work is in progress. A group of Azerbaijani doctors are undergoing training abroad. Well-known experts and scholars from foreign countries work in Azerbaijan. In the future, we will allocate even more funds for that in order to improve the professionalism of doctors. It is necessary not only to improve the material and technical infrastructure, but also, in general, to ensure that the level of health in Azerbaijan meets international standards.

I think that we have all the possibilities to do that. Infant mortality has fallen sharply in Azerbaijan in recent years. Both the statistical data and their dynamics are very positive. Doctors are well aware that, unfortunately, infant mortality has always been high in Azerbaijan, while in the Soviet era it was higher than in other republics. Now, infant mortality has fallen sharply. Life expectancy is growing, which is also a factor in the overall development of each country. It is gratifying that this process is also going in a positive direction. The population of Azerbaijan is growing. Over the past 10 years, the population in Azerbaijan grew by more than a million people. Population growth rate in Azerbaijan is the highest in Europe.

Of course, all of these factors require further major reforms in health care. We need to conduct structural reforms. At the same time, it is first of all necessary to improve professionalism. I am confident that if we continue to develop at this pace, these issues will also be addressed.

The work carried out in Azerbaijan in this area is also assessed by international organizations. Some time ago Baku hosted a conference of the European Committee for the World Health Organization. It was noted there that the health care system in Azerbaijan has seen great development and progress.

This is a reality. But it is also true that sometimes medical services are still not up to par. The qualification of some doctors can not satisfy us, there are hospitals that are in need of major repairs. But the important thing is that all these issues are dealt with consistently and rapidly in Azerbaijan. The solution of these issues, I want to say again, is part of our public policy. The solution of social issues is and always will be a priority for us.

This beautiful anniversary allows us the opportunity to raise such issues again, express our thoughts and look to the future with great hope. Azerbaijan should become a developed country in all respects in the future.

The bright image of Zarifa Aliyeva always lives in our hearts. I think that those who knew and did not know her, those read books and articles about her always keep her bright image in their hearts. Zarifa Aliyeva was a great doctor, a great scientist and a great personality. Her fond memories will always live in the hearts of those who knew her. Thank you.

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The ceremony continued with a concert featuring Azerbaijani artists dedicated to the 90th birthday anniversary of the outstanding scientist and ophthalmologist, Academician Zarifa Aliyeva.

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Then, President Ilham Aliyev reviewed a photo exhibition describing the life and work of Academician Zarifa Aliyeva.