Rahman Hajiyev gave a speech at the International Scientific-Practical Conference "Cultural Economy in Azerbaijan: Development Impulses from Shusha"

18-20 September, the Ministry of Culture and the Institute of Economics of the Ministry of Education, jointly organized the international scientific-practical conference titled "Cultural Economy in Azerbaijan: Development Impulses from Shusha" in Shusha and Baku.

The international event focused on our country's cultural and economic development prospects. It should be noted that the first part of the conference, within the framework of the "#think4culture" call under the "Shusha Year," was held in Shusha city. On September 20, the final session of the conference took place at the "Fairmont Hotel."

The event was attended by Farah Aliyeva, Director of the Presidential Administration's Department of Humanitarian Policy, Diaspora, Multiculturalism, and Religious Affairs; Anar Karimov, Minister of Culture; Elnur Aliyev, First Deputy Minister of Economy; Firudin Gurbanov, Deputy Minister of Education and Science; Rahman Hajiyev, Chairman of the Executive Board of the Karabakh Revival Fund; Members of Parliament, and other officials, as well as cultural experts. Rahman Hajiyev, Chairman of the Executive Board of the Karabakh Revival Fund, provided information to the participants of the event about the scale of destruction in the liberated territories, stating that the enemy had attempted to erase our history and culture over the years of occupation: "The liberation of our territories allowed us to see the destruction in Karabakh fully.

As it is known, the most affected objects are our historical monuments, during the enemy occupation period, they attempted to completely erase our history and culture.."." Despite all their efforts, Rahman Hajiyev mentioned that they could not succumb to the cunning desires of the Armenians, emphasizing that culture possesses significant potential: "Culture is not only our greatest asset but also a value that unites us and serves as a foundation for our future. It can contribute to the development of various fields such as economy, entrepreneurship, tourism, and others."

Furthermore, as the Chairman of the Executive Board mentioned, culture also signifies resilience and development. He highlighted the restoration of cities and other residential areas after the First and Second World Wars as examples: "For instance, during the First World War, many European cities suffered severe destruction, some almost wiped off the map. However, people united around cultural values and restored those cities."

In many cases, the restoration of cultural monuments, and symbols of cities, was carried out through the contributions of local and foreign entrepreneurs and the wider community. By looking at the experience of cities like Reims and Lens in France, we can see that initiatives based on the idea of restoring historical monuments enabled Reims to complete its restoration process in a shorter time.

However, Lens, which did not take advantage of this potential, lagged in the restoration process. The Azerbaijani people have always been distinguished by their rich culture. Therefore, we must understand the role and power of culture and apply its potential in the restoration and development of Karabakh and other areas, as well as in other fields."

After the speeches, questions from the participants were answered.

The conference continued its work with panel sessions.