Azerbaijan Becomes 58th Member Country of Asian Development Bank

Azerbaijan has officially become the 58th member of the Asian Development Bank. The ADB will undertake its first operational Mission to Azerbaijan in the Caucasus at the end of this month to prepare an economic report and interim operational strategy for the country. The report will help determine such issues as Azerbaijan's borrowing terms, its eligibility for concessional financing and the share of project costs to be borne by the ADB. The interim operational strategy will provide the framework for the ADB's initial lending and technical assistance operations. Azerbaijan, with a population of 7.9 million, lies at the juncture of Asia and Europe and shares borders with Russia, Armenia, Georgia, Turkey and Iran. Its annual per capita income of $518 puts it among the lowest-income countries of the region. However, Azerbaijan has massive oil and gas reserves and tapping this is crucial to its long-term development. Since 1994, the country has concluded several agreements with groups of oil companies with planned investments totaling US$60 billion. Oil production is rising and is expected to increase rapidly. The major challenge is to improve decision-making in the public sector to use the hydrocarbon income effectively for laying the foundation of sustainable growth, for raising general living standards and for developing the non-oil sectors. Another big challenge is to develop a viable financial sector - which requires a legal framework as well as institutions to enforce regulations - and a general enabling environment for the private sector.