By Trend

Since early 2019, the Entrepreneurship Development Fund of Azerbaijan (EDF) has provided 345 businessmen with preferential loans worth 37 million manats for financing investment projects worth 98.6 million manats, Deputy Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan Sahib Mammadov said at a business forum in the city of Guba, Trend reports referring to the Ministry of Economy.

According to Mammadov, the implementation of these investment projects will allow for opening more than 1,400 jobs.

The deputy minister noted that 65 percent of concessional loans were directed to the development of the agrarian sector, and 35 percent to the production and processing of various industrial goods.

Speaking of the work done, the deputy minister said that, until today, 2,700 entrepreneurs of the Guba-Khachmaz economic region have been allocated preferential loans worth 204.1 million manats for the implementation of various investment projects.

During the meeting held as part of the forum, preferential loans worth 1.5 million manats were allocated to 27 entrepreneurs of the Guba-Khachmaz economic region. The loans will be used to finance projects in such fields as animal husbandry, fishing and packaging of fruits and vegetables. The implementation of these projects will contribute to the creation of 70 workplaces.

Until now, preferential loans worth 46.8 million manats have been allocated for financing 29 intensive vegetable and grain farms.

This year, the fund plans to issue soft loans worth 160 million manats.

The EDF was established under the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan in 1992.

($1=1.7 AZN on May 8)