MOVING TO AZERBAIJAN

Our Moving to Azerbaijan Guide is available from upon request.

The Moving to Azerbaijan Guide is available online and has been created to help expatriate families moving to Azerbaijan.

The following pages are a sample of the type of information provided in the Moving to Azerbaijan guide:

Receive The Full Moving To Azerbaijan Guide

The following web pages are a stripped down version of the full information that you can access as an Interdean customer.

To receive your Moving to Azerbaijan Guide for your relocation, make sure that you request your complimentary copy as part of your move quotation.

KEY FACTS

Official Name: Republic of Azerbaijan

Capital City: Baku

Type of Government: Republic

Official Languages: Azerbaijani (Azeri); Russian also spoken

Area: 86,600 sq km/33,437 sq mi

Population: 8.2 million

Religion: Muslim (93%), Russian Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox

Currency: Azeri Manat (AM)

Number of Time Zones: 1

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) plus 4 hrs; Eastern Standard Time (EST) plus 9 hrs. Daylight Savings

Time is observed from the last Sunday in March through the last Sunday in October.

Weights and Measures: Metric system

Country Domain: .az

Country Tel Code: 994

AT A GLANCE

Mention the name Azerbaijan, and a number of images come to mind: reminders of Soviet occupation – both blatant and subtle; flavors of the Middle East; mosques; deserts; and oil. Oil is usually uppermost in the minds of expatriates moving to Azerbaijan, as it is the industry most likely to relocate people there.

Agriculture employs about one-third of the country’s workers; this sector contributes between 20 and 30 percent of the GDP and employs more than 30 percent of the workforce. Fishing is another important industry. Azerbaijan was once the world’s largest producer of sturgeon, though supplies of the fish have dwindled somewhat.

Economic overview

Challenges ahead

Oil has attracted people to Azerbaijan for centuries. The Soviets were just one example, when they claimed the land in 1920. Oil reserves were exploited, plants and refineries were built at the expense of the environment around Baku.

Since independence in 1991 Azerbaijan has faced many challenges, but it is hoped the oil that once drew invaders will now be the country’s salvation. Transitioning to a market economy from one run by the state is a task faced by other former Soviet countries, but Azerbaijan at least has tremendous natural resources at its disposal.

Some 70 percent of state-owned enterprises have been targeted for privatization, among them banking, electricity, and agriculture.

Economic reforms and foreign investment in oil, natural gas, and chemicals are seen as necessary to stabilize and grow the economy.

Instability in the Nagorno-Karabakh region – an area fought over by Azeris and Armenians – continues to deter foreign investment and dampen expectations for a swift improvement in economic conditions.

Progress

Still, improvements have come. A group of foreign oil companies signed a US$7.4 billion, 20-year deal with Azerbaijan in 1994. While most people have not benefitted yet from this deal (45 percent of the population lives below the poverty line) the government is pinning its hopes of economic stability on this long-term investment in the country.

Inflation, over 1600 percent about 10 years ago, has since reached a low as less one percent, but has climbed again to 15 percent. In 2004, GDP growth was over 10 percent. In the same year, foreign investment – mainly in the hydrocarbon industry – swelled to US$4.4 billion. The country has also drawn significantly on funds from an IMF program aimed at poverty reduction.

Politics

Background

A Soviet Republic since the 1920s, Azerbaijan came to Joseph Stalin’s attention during World War II. In 1945 Stalin attempted to join Azerbaijan with northern Iran, which has a large population of Azeris. Rebuffed by Allied forces, Stalin retreated.

A Communist party first secretary at the time, Heydar Aliyev would become the country’s longest-standing elected official. President Aliyev took over the presidency for the fleeing Abulfaz Elchibey in 1993, and was elected to a second term in 1998. He is credited with making strides toward peace in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The last presidential election was in 2003, when Ilham Aliyev was elected to succeed his father, Heydar, although there were questions about the standards of the election process. Again, in the parliamentary election of November 2005, disputes arose about election results.

Structure

As a republic, Ajerbaijan has an elected president and prime minister. The president is elected for a five-year term; all citizens age 18 and over may vote. There is a 125-member National Assembly, Milli Majlis. One hundred members are elected to five-year terms; 25 members are elected by proportional representation.

Several political parties are represented. Among them are the current president’s New Azerbaijan Party (NAP), a reform party; the Azerbaijan Popular Front (APF), Musavat Party, and Azerbaijan Communist Party.

UNDERSTANDING THE PEOPLE
Azerbaijanis – or Azeris as they are also called – are an ancient people dating back to 3000 B.C. It is a very homogeneous society: about 90 percent of the country’s population is ethnic Azeri. The remaining 10 percent is comprised of Russians, Armenians, Turks, Kurds, and other nationalities. Armenians live chiefly in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, land fought over by Azeris and Armenians.

Population growth is just under 0.3 percent. The average family has 2.2 children. About 55 percent of the population is between the ages of 16 and 54. Twenty-eight percent of the population is under age 15, 10 percent is between 55 and 65, and seven percent is over 65.

Culture

Language

Residents of Azerbaijan speak Azeri, the national language, which is similar to Turkish. Many also speak Russian. The written language underwent changes both during Soviet rule and after. The alphabet was changed from Arabic to Roman when the Soviets took control in the 1920s. In the 1930s it was changed from Roman to Cyrillic. Now Roman script is being phased back into use. You may see the language written in the Roman or Cyrillic alphabet. Government publications are still printed in both Russian and Azeri.

The country enjoys a high literacy rate – 97 percent – a commendable rate, considering the country’s large rural population of agricultural workers.

Religion

Islam is the dominant religion in the country, although citizens are free to follow whatever religion they wish. Russian Orthodox and Armenian Orthodox churches also have followings, and there is a small Jewish population.

On the whole, Azeris are not overly religious, having undergone years of Soviet rule during which Islam was discouraged. More and more Azeris are practicing Muslims since independence, as they are free to revisit their religious roots and restore traditional family values.

About 70 of Azeri Muslims are Shi’ites; 30 percent are Sunni Muslims.

Carpets

Azerbaijan is known for its beautiful carpets. Baku has a carpet museum, where newcomers can learn the intricacies of this traditional art form. A prayer rug, for example – or namazlig – typically has a small arrow embedded in the design; the arrow should face mecca as the owner kneels on the rug to pray.

Attitudes

Local values

During the long period of Soviet rule, two full generations of Azeris lost touch somewhat with their national traditions. Certain traits have prevailed, however. A strong sense of national pride, love of local culture and language, and a deep committment to family are values shared by many Azeris.
Azeris are very hospitable to each other and newcomers. Visitors are treated with wonderful hospitality – and often offered the very best a family has to offer.

Given the country’s relative dearth of services, people have come to rely on one another. Neighbors and friends always know someone who can perform a necessary service – be it piano lessons, haircuts, or tax preparation. Understandably, networking and personal contacts are very important in Azerbaijan.

Education also is important, thanks in part to the Soviet presence, during which the country claimed a 100-percent literacy rate.

Foreigners

Azeris are generally aware of goings-on in the region, due to their long history of changing borders and rule by outsiders. Residents of the capital have a worldly view, and are accustomed to international visitors and businesspeople. People living in rural areas – about 46 percent of the country – have less access to information and are less informed about world events.

Most Azeris are well aware of the need for foreign investment to stabilize and grow their economy. This attitude fosters an acceptance of foreigners that complements Azeris’ natural warmth and hospitality.

CITIES

Baku

Azerbaijan’s capital is also its most Westernized city, and the place most expatriates live. The base of the country’s oil industry, Baku is home to about 1.8 million inhabitants. Shipbuilding, electrical manufacturing, chemicals, and textiles are other local industries.

Baku is located on the Apsheron Peninsula, which is shaped like a bird’s beak jutting out into the Caspian Sea. Some of its townships are on the islands off the coast of Baku.

The original city was built as a fortress; the wall still stands around the old town section. The modern day city commercial center is northeast of old town.

Beyond the old section, Baku is a cosmopolitan city offering theaters, art galleries, museums, and shopping. Its Soviet past is evident in a number of its gray concrete block structures. Beyond the city limits is desert.

Ganca

The country’s second-largest city, Ganca is home to about 302,000. Located in northwestern Azerbaijan on the Ganca River, it is one of the country’s industrial centers. It is also considered Azerbaijan’s literary heart, with several universities and institutes.

Central Ganca is dominated by a large square surrounded by buildings of Soviet architecture, although there is some German influence as well. Various ruins dot the area, as do old Armenian churches that now serve other purposes.

Mingachevir

Situated east-northeast of Ganca, Mingachevir is a light manufacturing city of about 98,000. It is the country’s forth largest city. Mingachevir’s hydroelectric power plant on the Kura River powers the city and protects against flooding and drought.

The city boasts a number of parks, and a small beach on a man-made lake.

Nakhichevan

The main city in a region by the same name, Nakhichevan is set apart from the rest of Azerbaijan by a strip of Armenian land. It is home to about 70,000, and the country’s sixth largest city.

This arid, mountainous area can be strikingly beautiful, if sometimes stark and lacking in basic amenities.

Local legend has it that Noah’s ark first touched ground on the Ilan-dag – or snake mountain – of Nakhichevan. Nakhichevan, which means “colony of Noah,” has an autonomous parliament. Travelers once required special visas to travel to this region, but those restrictions have been relaxed and no special stamp is necessary for entry.

Sumgait

Sumgait is on the north coast of the Apsheron Peninsula, northwest of Baku. It is Azerbaijan’s third largest city, with a population of about 292,000.

Historically an industrial city, Sumgait has been known for its polluting emanations from chemical plants. Air quality has improved in the last decade – slightly – but it is still better suited to commerce than habitation. The city suffers from high cancer and infant mortality rates – the latter was once the highest in the world.

Major products from Sumgait include steel, rubber, petrochemicals, and detergents.

CLIMATE
Azerbaijan’s climate varies by season and region. Summers are hot – 40°C/104°F – and humid in low lying areas such as coastal Baku. In mountainous regions summers are milder, and snow is frequent in winter. Baku’s winters can be cold – but not excessively so – typically 4°C/39°F. Snow is rare in the capital.

Rainfall is infrequent in most parts of the country. The heaviest rains fall in the Lenkoran Lowlands, the southern region near the border with Iran. Travelers driving through rain should take care to monitor road conditions, as poor conditions can become much worse as rain drenches unpaved roads.

Coastal Azerbaijan is quite humid all year. Humidity levels are steady around 70 percent for most of the year, although it may drop below 60 percent occasionally.

Residents and workers in Baku dress in keeping with the warm weather; layers are recommended. While clothing styles follow Western standards, women should take particular care to dress conservatively in business.

Winds in Baku

The capital city of Baku is known for its tremendous winds, which blow through with great force a few times each month. Winds come either from the Caspian Sea to the south, or from inland areas to the west and northwest. Although they cause residents to secure outdoor items, the winds often provide relief from summer’s oppressive humidity. In winter also, the winds drop the temperature, but the added chill is not as welcome then.

Information provided in association with Living Abroad