Russian news website Pravda.ru has published an article, entitled “Chronicles of COVID-19: Azerbaijan – an example of efficiency and trust.”

In the article written in Russian, the author praised the measures being taken by the Azerbaijani state under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev to combat the pandemic.

News.Az presents the article.

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is undoubtedly a challenge for the whole world and has hurt even the economies that seemed unbreakable.

We see that each state has its own approaches and its own methods of action during the COVID-19 pandemic. Undoubtedly, now every state is demonstrating to its citizens its own legal capacity and efficiency during the crisis. Its effectiveness and the trust of the people are the most important foundation for a successful future.

In the post-Soviet space, the situation with the coronavirus pandemic is different. According to WHO statistics, the situation looks more optimistic than what is observed in Europe and the USA.

In this regard, an example of Azerbaijan, a leading state in a region with a strong and stable economy, is interesting. Even before the coronavirus pandemic in Azerbaijan, major reforms were announced and shortly carried out, which affected literally all spheres of life.

The development of the oil sector has become a priority in the country's economic development, which made it possible to ensure greater stability of the economy and positively solve the problems of employment of the population.

On the initiative of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, serious measures were taken to combat the shadow economy, they ensured transparency and the introduction of information technologies in the activities of state bodies, a centralized electronic information system in the field of public services was created, the improvement of which, on behalf of the head of state, continues to this day.

All these reforms and measures are aimed primarily at improving the well-being of the citizens.

In many ways, this preparation also became the key to the country’s successful struggle against the pandemic. Today, Azerbaijan, at the expense of its own resources, implements an effective plan of measures to combat the pandemic, provides state support for all areas of the economy.

It should be recalled that by the presidential order, an Operational Headquarters was established under the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan.

To prevent mass infection, the situation with population movements was taken under control almost immediately in the republic. The educational process was suspended, all mass events were canceled and postponed, as well as malls and entertainment centers were closed down.

A special quarantine regime was introduced, under which the population is allowed to leave at a specific scheduled time through SMS permissions. The operation of the Baku Metro was suspended, and the movement of ground public transport was limited.

A wide range of activities carried out on behalf of and under the direct supervision of President Ilham Aliyev was aimed at providing state support to all vulnerable sectors of the economy.

Today, Azerbaijan is also able to independently provide its citizens with all the protective equipment used in the fight against coronavirus.

Moreover, with the participation of President Ilham Aliyev and first lady Mehriban Aliyeva, an enterprise manufacturing medical masks was commissioned in Azerbaijan, the production volume of which totals 250,000 units per day.

With the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, led by First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva, 18 well-equipped modern laboratories are operating in the country.

One of the most important steps in the fight against the pandemic was the inauguration of a new 574-bed medical facility designed for treatment of virus infected people.

Thanks to the social campaign “Together We Are Strong” initiated by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, over 100 thousand food packages were distributed to low-income families. The number of participants in the campaign is growing every day, both state and private companies are joining this initiative.

This is only a small part of those activities carried out in Azerbaijan in a short time. Therefore, we can say with confidence that Azerbaijan, under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, is defeating the coronavirus. Today, the dynamics of infected people in the country is less than those who recovered. It has already been announced that starting May 4, the country will partially ease the special quarantine regime.

Of course, the coronavirus pandemic caused damage to Azerbaijan’s economy. Despite this, the country's leadership took timely measures to protect the health and safety of its citizens. Moreover, the strategy of all the measures taken is aimed at reducing the negative impact of the consequences of the pandemic on the national economy.

The work done by President Ilham Aliyev was also appreciated by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

On the initiative of President Ilham Aliyev, an extraordinary Summit of the Turkic Council was held on April 10 through videoconferencing. The Summit focused on the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

Moreover, on the initiative of President Ilham Aliyev, a Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement’s (NAM) Contact Group will be held through videoconference on May 4. The Summit entitled "We stand together against COVID-19" will focus on the fight against coronavirus pandemic.

Azerbaijan has undoubtedly become a model in the implementation of measures to prevent the negative impact of the consequences of the pandemic on economic entities. Many countries are already adopting the experience of Azerbaijan, the key to the success of which is seen in the openness of the country's leadership, transparency of the economy, cohesion and consolidation of the society around the president.

News.Az