You participated
in the elaboration of the State program on Development
of Tourism for 2002-2005. What has motivated your
undertaking such a program and can you remind us
what are the main guidelines of the project?
During the first few years after Azerbaijan gained
independence the political and economic situation
in the country was so that there was no chance
and time to think about tourism as a potential
for the development of economy in the country.
And there was no state body responsible for tourism
in the country. Only in April, 2001 the president
gave an order to establish this ministry on the
basis of the Youth and Sports Ministry existing
at that time.
Before there was only the state council and it
was responsible for issuing licences for the companies
that were dealing with international tourism.
At that time there was not even a chance for the
tourism to be born, the time itself did not permit
us to develop tourism, because there were a lot
of problems in the country to solve and still
much to do. But after the situation changed and
economy of Azerbaijan became more stable, the
necessity of the alternative kind of activity
in economy besides energy occured. It was seen
as one of the opportunities to increase the variety
of the bussiness within the private sector. But
we had the possibility to benefit from the experience
of neigbouring countries as Turkey and others
to start tourism by using the existing potential
of the nature, traditions, culture and hospitability.
As Azerbaijan became a stable country, the government
gave a permission for further development of tourism.
Unfortunately, we did not have a chance to do
it earlier but nevertheless it is better late
than never.
We were required to bring a clear understanding
of tourism in the social life of the country,
like an important economical activity, to show
the profitability and necessity of developing
tourism like an economical activity both to the
government and private sector as well. We also
took some political steps, one of which was applying
to the president to issue the decree about the
necessity of developing tourism.
Since 2001 almost every year Azerbaycan has been
participating in international tourist affairs
in Moscow, Berlin, London, Turkey, Spain, Kazakhstan.
Azerbaijan has applied for the International World
(?) Organization responsible for tourism.
A strategy of tourism development for 2003-2020
has been worked out. What is the main long-term
objective behind this strategy?
We are interested in building up the tourism development
strategy for next 50 years and more but it does
not completely depend on us, we agreed with the
US government through the Trade Development Agency,
that they will finance the creation of the masterplan
of development of tourism in Azerbaijan. If foreign
experts have already agreed to finance the creation
of the masterplan it means that the tourism in
Azerbaijan has a big potential.
But now we are just fulfilling the first plan
for development of tourism that we issued for
the short period of time till 2005 which was the
political document bringing an understanding of
tourism into society.
As it was mentioned most investors tend to look
at the development of the tourism sector in the
country, to what extent are you in contact with
the president himself or the Ministry of the Economic
Development in order to organize all those issues?
Tourism after being approved as a very important
sector of development in the country presents
all the documents connected with the regional
development. Moreover, tourism is one of the essential
parts of the programme signed by the government
of Azerbaijan with the World Bank and United Nations
Development Programme as one of the means to reduce
the poverty and increase the number of work places.
I think there must be a unique international tourist
organisation that unites all the relevant organizations
in the world. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural
Resources of Azerbaijan also helps tourism to
grow. The more parks are being opened the more
opportunities for the green tourism to grow up
and the more green and ecologically clean places
we have the more ground will be for the tourism.
There are already 7 projects financed in Azerbaijan.
We are preparing 15 more projects and I should
notice that they are all from the private sector.
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Do you think there is enough interest and
attraction today for the foreign investors to
invest in that sector?
I hope that in 5 years there is not going to
be even "place on the shelf". Today
we feel a great interest from the foreign investors.
United States are already involved in investment
in the prepatation of the masterplan, Turkish
investors already are investing in Azerbaycan,
we are negotiating with investors from Izrael,
as well as England and Germany. These all countiries
understand that Azerbaycan has a very big potential.
We already put forward our proposal to Chinese
parthners about developing tourism with us. Both
sides feel the nessecity and sees the profit.
What is most important that our local people after
bringing the tourism to the agenda started to
invest , as a constructing hotel. The attraction
of the foreign investors is very big as you can
see as example of modern hotel Hayatt Park , it
is not property of Azerbaycan , it completely
belongs to the foreign investors, but it is a
big investment. At the moment we feel lack of
good hotels, three stars hotel, lack of good services
in the hotels, restaurants, we have openned a
special colleges for training our staff. We are
trying to organize things for the tourists to
make it easier even to get to our country, so
the problem with getting a visa in airport is
fixed by now. We have put a big reduction in prices
for visa for the collective entry of 20 tourist
, but at the moment we had to put off this discount
because there is no rush, and usually tourist
are coming in a small groups. According to the
law all foreign investments are protected by the
government as much money has been broght in ,
the same amount can be easily taken out, without
any obsticles, the government secures it.
But we are hoping and waiting for the foreign
investors mainly coming from people who knows
Azerbaycan not only due to tourizm activity, it
is people coming due to oil rush, credability
of business and stable situation of the econmics
of Azerbaycan.
Foreigners know that Azerbaycan has a very hospitality
population, it has warm and soft climate, people
that tried our vegetables and meat, will come
back here again. So that is also how we know that
our land attracts the tourists. The ecosystem
of Azerbaycan is very variable, even during the
Soviet time we had 17 national parks, on very
small territory of land, due to the climatic posibilities
created the natural resources as fishing , hunting.
Nature to Azerbaycan is given by God and it is
our aim to protect it. There is a big attration
in human potential, our people are very educated
and friendly, our traditions of hospitality are
coming from anxious time. Azerbaycan has a huge
history, you can see it though the monuments we
have.
Azerbaycan has beautiful music, talanted writers
and national as well as modern theatres.You can
see a combination of Western and Eastern cultures
through many different ways. In my opinion Azerbaycan
grasped the best from these two different cultures,
and it is important for the development of tourizm
in our country.
The oil attracted foregners the most, the development
of Baku and generally Azerbaycan at the beginning
at the previous century was also connected with
oil sector . Everybody admires Noble Price , but
no one knows that the besic of the noble price
was started in Azerbaycan in Baku, because Noble
Brothers came to Azerbaycan and openned here very
perspective kind of economy, they started their
business here and the money taken from Azerbaycan
had been put further. Noble Brothers came here
to sell the weapons , because they constructed
weapon in Sweden and they wanted to sell it overseas.
When they came here , they saw that here is much
more attractive things to do.
From the historical part Azerbaycan has place
called Gobustanç it is 70 km away to the
South of Baku the case with the rocky mountains
, just close to the city ,with the wall paints
of the anxious people, the oldest date is 9019
centuries before the Christ, so the settelment
of people even at that time were in Azerbaycan,
this was proved by sientists. One of them was
a scientist from Norway ,well known traveller
Toorheyerdal, the man who inishiated first Asian
trip from Europe, America.He has visited Azerbaycan
several times , he openned this case for himself
and said that the roots of modern Norwagean people
comes from this settelment here. Because the boats,
the temper of the people painted on the walls
in Gobustan resembles the same things in Nother
part of Europe. Azerbaycan was always on the crossroad
of all the trips from Europe to Asia, Silk road
is business road, but people who came to open
the new ways, they usually passed through Azerbaycan,
specially at that time everyone knew that Azerbaycan
was land of fires, although there was not oil
at that time. Thousands of fire-worshippers were
coming to Azerbaycan just to worship to the fire.
There are a lot of things to be recovered, to
be openned by the newcomers to Azerbaycan and
i think our main aim is to create economical and
hospitable climate attractive for investments
for tourism , in development level of services
of bringing tourism to the number one economical
sphere of activity in the country, although it
is difficult , it takes time. Turkey managed to
do it in 25 years, i hope that we will manage
in 10.
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V.I.P. INTERVIEWS
