Presidential Administration: Azerbaijan is only post-Soviet state paying particular attention to youth

Preference will be given to young people in admitting to public service in Azerbaijan, the head of the department on social and political issues of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration Ali Hasanov said in an interview with Trend. He was commenting on yesterday's meeting of President Ilham Aliyev with a group of the youth and representatives of youth student organizations who succeeded in different areas.

"Vacancies in the public service are limited. Nevertheless, preference will be given to the youth in filling these vacancies. Thus, when several people apply for the same vacancy, preference will be given to young people," said Hasanov.

He said a special youth policy has been pursued in Azerbaijan since 1994.

"National Leader of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev created the Ministry of Youth and Sports in 1994. A Youth Forum was held in 1995. Since then, government policy has been constantly carried out on education, employment, physical and spiritual health, involvement in public service, organization of leisure time of youth and other issues. Recently, President Ilham Aliyev has signed a special decree on the development of the State Program on Azerbaijani youth in 2011-2015. A working group has been established in this regard. Yesterday's meeting with a group of young people who succeeded in different spheres covered some points of this program," Hasanov added.

Hasanov said the President stated at the meeting that the Azerbaijani youth will always be on the focus of the state. Like today, attention will further be paid to the problem of employment, education, involvement in the public service, the issues of family, household, housing and others.

Hasanov stressed the State Program envisages resolving the issue of youth employment under a single program.

"The State Program provides a variety of activities regarding the youth employment. It will also reflect the issues of involving young people in public service, and their employment at other institutions, especially for vacancies in Azerbaijan's representations at foreign trans-national institutions. At the same time, the Program envisages creating favorable and beneficial conditions for business and entrepreneurship activities of youth, financing various programs of young people, providing them with various loans under the National Fund for Entrepreneurship Development for entrepreneurial activities," Hasanov said.

Hasanov said Azerbaijan is the only post-Soviet state that pays particular attention to the youth, permanently adopts state programs, conducts annual meetings with the youth, and examines certain problems of the youth.

"None of the neighboring states has the youth and sports ministry, or implements special state programs. Or none of them conducts such active youth policy as Azerbaijan does. This tradition was laid by National Leader Heydar Aliyev and is now continued by the President of the country. Azerbaijan takes into consideration interests of the youth in every issue. Over several recent years, as the oil capital becomes the intellectual one, Azerbaijan has been organizing the study of best representatives of the youth abroad, and has been providing their participation in different technological centers, higher schools and other organizations of foreign countries," Hasanov said.


/Trend/