Azerbaijan

Capital: Baku
Population: 10.15 million (2021) World Bank
Currency: Azerbaijani Manat (AZN)
Time: UTC+4 (AZT)

Since declaring independence in 1991 from the former Soviet Union, Azerbaijan has propelled itself into the 21st century by developing its energy resources and reinvesting in the wider economy.
Azerbaijan serves as a logistics hub with the biggest airport, seaport, and railway network in the Caspian region. International businesses based in the country can use this position and Azerbaijan’s extensive Free Trade Agreements to re-export within the region and beyond.

Azerbaijan plans to install 1500MW of renewables by 2030 increasing the share of renewables in the installed electricity generation up to 30% (current figure is 17%). The near-term opportunities are onshore wind, solar and hydro projects.
The government is also keen to assess the long-term potential of offshore wind (equivalent to the offshore wind potential in the North Sea), hydrogen, geothermal and energy storage, and take advantage of energy efficiency improvement.
UK businesses are seen to have a comparative competitive edge in these sectors. As the Azerbaijan Government looks to emulate UK strengths in the sector.

ICT is considered one of the drivers of the non-oil economy in Azerbaijan.
The sector is growing at an astonishing rate. The Government is progressing with two strategies focused on Smart Cities and Cyber Security.
There is appetite for the establishment of public-private partnerships and joint research and development centers in Azerbaijan. UK businesses providing solutions in HealthTech, EdTech, advanced cyber security, corporate innovation and smart cities/smart villages are in a high demand.

Approximately 37% of the population works in agriculture. The share of agricultural products in Azerbaijan’s non-oil exports on average accounts for around 47%.
Local businesses are open for co-investing and collaboration in the dairy industry, crop production and food processing plants. There is a particular need for agronomy training, research and development, soil analysis, crop protocols, audits and fertilizer index systems.

The Azerbaijani healthcare system is in transition as the government introduces a scheme of Mandatory Social Health Insurance (MSHI).
With the introduction of MSHI across the country, the public health system is taking significant steps towards developing and improving. In private healthcare there is an increase in demand for telemedicine and digital technology, as well as a need for development of specialiszed areas of treatment such as for strokes and cardiac transplants.

To learn more about the UK’s trade relationship with Azerbaijan, visit hereopens www.gov.uk in a new tab and contact EECAN.ExportHub@fcdo.gov.uk to discuss the opportunities in the region.