The Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication (CAERC) jointly organized an online training on “Development of E-Government and Transition to Digital Government.”

The training aimed to provide participants—primarily employees of local executive authorities—with knowledge on the country’s inclusive development, e-government development, new directions in digital government transition, the role of local authorities in implementing strategic roadmaps, and monitoring and evaluation of these roadmaps, including lessons from the 2017 assessment.

Opening Remarks:

• Academic Urxan Ələkbərov, Rector of the Academy, highlighted the successful outcomes of Heydər Əliyev’s policies and their continuation by President İlham Əliyev, emphasizing the theoretical foundations and practical implementation of innovative governance technologies in Azerbaijan. He noted that these measures contributed to Azerbaijan’s competitive performance in economic and social indicators, including a high score in the inclusive development index reported at the 2018 Davos Forum. He also stressed the key role of First Vice President Mehriban Əliyeva in advancing these initiatives.

• Vüsal Qasımlı, CAERC Executive Director, underscored that sustained economic reforms are yielding results, with numerous legal frameworks and normative acts adopted to support the application of modern information and communication technologies and the delivery of services electronically. He emphasized that one of the strategic roadmaps focuses on the development of telecommunications and information technologies, aiming to ensure transparency and accessibility by minimizing direct interaction with citizens.

Key Highlights:

• Azerbaijan maintains its status as the most reform-oriented country in the Doing Business rankings.

• Significant reforms have been implemented across business processes, including starting a business, obtaining construction permits, connecting to electricity networks, property registration, access to credit, investor protection, tax compliance, foreign trade, contract enforcement, and business closure procedures.

• CAERC-led digital projects such as Azexport Portal, Digital Trade Hub, Unified Online Export Application, and EnterpriseAzerbaijan.com contribute to the construction of a digital economy.

Specialized Sessions:

• Ramil Hüseyn, Head of Strategic Planning and Development Department at CAERC, discussed the role of local executive authorities in implementing strategic roadmaps.

• Faiq Qasımlı, CAERC macroeconomist, presented on monitoring and evaluating the implementation of strategic roadmaps.

The training was conducted in accordance with President İlham Əliyev’s Decree on the Development of E-Government and Transition to Digital Government.