Culture minister puts the spotlight on economic aspect of culture

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilov

Azerbaijani Culture Minister Anar Karimov has addressed a scientific-practical conference on "Cultural Economy in Azerbaijan: Shusha - development impulses", Azernews reports citing Azertac.

In his speech, the minister highlighted the main issues that lie ahead after the liberation of Azerbaijani lands from Armenian occupation.

The process goes through several stages, one of which is the cultural revival of culture.

Anar Karimov named Khari Bulbul Music Festival, Vaqif Poetry Days, Majlisi-uns, and other cultural events held in Shusha after the liberation. The minister also drew attention to cultural economics.

"If until now we were thinking about the spiritual side of culture, now it is time to concentrate on cultural economics. The two-day international conference features discussions on the cultural economy with the participation of well-known experts. Today, we will also discuss issues such as tax benefits and copyright protection," he added.

The minister also touched on the principle of operations of the agencies engaged in creative activity.

"Culture and creative industries are reflected in the state program for 2022-2026 as areas with priority development prospects. Our main task is not to interfere with those institutions engaged in creative activity. On the contrary, they are a single force to play the role of a bridge between private sectors and state institutions. From this point of view, meetings are repeatedly held with institutions and sectors involved in the creative industry, and many proposals are listened to," Anar Karimov said.

The minister stressed that the contribution of creative industries to the economy is always on the agenda. He emphasized that creative industries are one of the priority areas for 2030.

One of the most important goals of the Culture Ministry is to attract investment from the private sector to creative industries and provide tax benefits.

The conference was followed by panel discussions.

The international scientific-practical conference is being held under the topic Think4Culture within the Year of Shusha in Azerbaijan.

The conference highlights the prospects of the cultural economy in Azerbaijan.

Local and foreign experts in the field, from fifteen countries, including Turkiye, Britain, Israel, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, and other countries, are participating in the international conference.

The large-scale conference was co-organized by the Culture Ministry and the Institute of Economics operating under the Ministry of Science and Education.