Expanded Summary

A feature of the functioning of the world economy and international economic relations in the second half of the 20th century is the creation of free (special or special) economic zones, the construction of which is aimed, as a rule, at solving specific priority general economic, industrial, foreign trade, social, regional and scientific and technical problems. Moreover, the development of free economic zones serve to implement strategically important programs and projects based on international cooperation.

At present, there are more than 4 thousand FEZ of various types in the world, which have become widespread throughout the world, ranging from industrialized countries to economically underdeveloped ones. After the collapse of the USSR, free zones are also opened in the post-Soviet space. According to experts, 40-45% of the world trade turnover is planned through special economic zones. The number of people employed in such zones will exceed 5 million people, and the rate of return will be 30% or more annually. Undoubtedly, the benchmark set by the countries for the construction of FEZ is diverse, in view of the fact that they depend on the indicator of the socio-economic and scientific and technological development of the states that form them. As a result, the target settings and prerequisites for their organization in each specific example may differ from each other.

Developments on the formation of economic zones in the national economic history of Azerbaijan were undertaken after the transition of the national economy to market conditions of functioning. At the same time, the provision on special zones in the republic was not carried out consistently enough, since there was no necessary legal framework governing this process.

On March 6, 2007, the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On the creation of special economic zones in the Republic of Azerbaijan" was issued as the creation of favorable conditions for the development of the economy of the country and its individual regions, the promotion of investments and their direction in priority areas, the opening of new jobs, the use of modern management experience, the offer of competitive goods and services And, since this period, a number of legislative acts and resolutions related to the activities of the FEZ in our country have been adopted in the AR.

On April 14, 2009, the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan “On Special Economic Zones” and the corresponding Presidential Decree on its application were adopted. This Law regulates legal and economic relations in connection with the creation and management of special economic zones in the Republic of Azerbaijan, establishes the rules for organizing entrepreneurial activities in these zones. In addition, on April 24, 2013, the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan approved the “Approximate regulation on industrial parks”.

The development of the non-oil sector, especially the modernization of industry, is a key component of the economic policy of our government. In accordance with this, the head of state approved the "State Program for the Development of Industry in the Republic of Azerbaijan for 2015-2020", declaring 2014 the "Year of Industry". The industrial parks and industrial districts created in the country are a clear example of structural changes in the industrial sector.

At present, there are 6 industrial parks and 4 industrial districts in the republic. The main direction of expanding industrial parks and industrial districts in the Republic of Azerbaijan is to promote the stable development of the non-oil sector, help entrepreneurship, use new technologies to intensify competitive industrial production, and increase employment in the manufacturing sector.In addition to the development of industrial and technological parks, our country is also actively implementing measures to create a free economic zone, which will increase the competitiveness of the economy and will strengthen Azerbaijan's position as a logistics and transport center.

To this end, on May 22, 2020, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan signed a decree “On the establishment and organization of the activities of the Alat Free Economic Zone”. The implementation of this project will increase the strategic importance of our republic, which plays an important role in the transit and transport corridors East-West and North-South.

Moreover, it is planned to create industrial parks in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. In particular, these are Agdam Industrial Park and Araz Valley Economic Zone Industrial Park.

Thus, summing up, we can say with confidence that the Republic of Azerbaijan has all the positive factors for the creation and operation of the FEZ, since special economic zones are the decisive basis for strategic reforms, plus significant support from the state, which gives impetus to the formation, first of all, of the non-energy sector, the application of which is very important for the expansion of the national economy of Azerbaijan. For our republic, special economic zones are an economy of scale, this is technical leadership, this is an improvement in production efficiency and overcoming the problem of regional unemployment.