The head of state made the remarks during an extraordinary summit of the Turkic Council held Friday through videoconferencing.

"Currently, the purchase of medical supplies and equipment has become a problem in the world. The sale of manufactured equipment and supplies is restricted by states. Therefore, there is a need for domestic production. To meet domestic demand, an enterprise manufacturing medical masks was launched in our country in early April,” he said.

The president reminded that the Fund to Support Fight Against Coronavirus was established in Azerbaijan on his initiative.

“As of today, the amount of donations transferred to this Fund is more than 110 million manats or $65 million. Along with public funds, voluntary donations of individuals, entrepreneurs and organizations to the fund are also very symbolic. This is an example of solidarity in Azerbaijani society,” he added.

President Aliyev stressed that the coronavirus outbreak dealt a blow to the global economy.

He said that the Azerbaijani state has allocated 2.5 billion manats, or about $ 1.5 billion to ensure the country’s economic stability, solve employment process and keep the macroeconomic and financial situation stable.

“The Cabinet of Ministers has developed and approved an Action Plan to reduce the negative impact of the pandemic on the country's economy, macroeconomic stability, employment and business entities. If we take into account the areas most affected by the coronavirus and the number of people engaged in entrepreneurship, we see that about 600 thousand people suffer from this situation. Entrepreneurs have been asked not to cut jobs," the head of state added.

The president noted that the state will pay a significant part of the salaries of more than 300,000 people working for 44,000 entrepreneurial businesses.

“Besides, more than 290,000 micro and individual entrepreneurs will benefit from state support,” he concluded.

More about: Azerbaijan   COVID-19   Turkic-Council