Minister: 1.5 million people engaged in Azerbaijan's agrarian sector

About 1.5 million people work in the agricultural sector in Azerbaijan, Agriculture Minister Ismat Abbasov said at the 49th meeting of the Working Group on the Phytosanitary Regulations of the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO), which opened in Baku on Tuesday.

"Some 48 percent of Azerbaijan's population lives in the agrarian countryside. Thirty-nine percent of the economically active population is involved in agriculture. Therefore, the development of the agricultural sector is one of the state policy priorities," Abbasov said.
The Azerbaijani population has reached 9.137 million people as of April 1. Abbasov said the issue of food security is relevant for Azerbaijan.

"The UN reports that today more than a billion people in the world live in conditions of hunger and their number will grow in the future. Therefore, the issue of food security is very relevant today. First of all, each state should try to solve this problem on its own - then this question should be addressed at the regional level, and after that on a global scale," Abbasov said.

Azerbaijan has been a member of EPPO since 2007, and the country was elected to the executive committee of the organization in 2010.

EPPO Director General Arnitis Ringolds said that although Azerbaijan has recently joined the organization, it has become one of the most active members.

The Meeting on Phytosanitary regulations will continue until June 24.

The main issues on the agenda is the discussion of existing and prepared standards for plant protection and quarantine, improvement of the list of quarantine pests in the EPPO member countries (51 countries), analysis of risks of planting materials, removal, containment and emergency planning, and phytosanitary standards in forestry.


/Trend/