BAKU, Azerbaijan, September
26. Agreements exceeding $10 billion in potential
investments have already been signed within the framework of the
2nd Azerbaijan International Investment Forum (AIIF 2026),
Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan and Head of the Department
for Economic Issues and Innovative Development Policy of the
Presidential Administration, Shahmar Movsumov, told reporters on the sidelines
of the forum.


He noted that representatives from major investment funds from
various countries around the world are participating in the
forum.


"Collectively, they manage assets exceeding $30 trillion.
Naturally, these institutions are exploring all possible options
for investing in Azerbaijan. We are very hopeful that this forum
will lead to the emergence of concrete projects and the realization
of investments.


At the same time, groundwork has been laid for even larger
projects, particularly in the areas of digitalization and
transformation," the Presidential Assistant noted.


Movsumov emphasized that the country's energy potential is a
significant advantage for the development of data centers in
Azerbaijan.


"Azerbaijan's advantage lies precisely in the fact that we
possess abundant, affordable, and—potentially in the future—green
energy. Today, President Ilham Aliyev also announced the existence
of vast energy potential in Azerbaijan's renewable electricity
sector," he stated.


Responding to a question regarding the draft state budget for
2027 and the reduction in the volume of transfers from the Oil Fund
to the state budget, Sh. Movsumov noted that the budget continues
to grow.


"Budget growth is continuing; as you can see, the budget isn't
shrinking. Within the budget framework, transfers from the Oil Fund
are decreasing to some extent. This indicates that Azerbaijan is
managing its oil resources in a more long-term and sustainable
manner. However, the programs will continue," he noted.







According to Movsumov, the growth in the Oil Fund's assets is a
positive indicator.


"The growth of our reserves is one of the indicators
demonstrating Azerbaijan's status as a reliable partner and the
resilience of its economy. This increase in reserves is a very
positive development. However, this does not mean that we are not
utilizing oil revenues. A transfer of $7 billion from the Oil Fund
to the state budget is envisaged for the coming year. This is a
substantial amount," the President's aide explained.


He pointed out that in recent years, the government has
established numerous incentive mechanisms to support the
development of the non-oil sector.


"The ultimate goal of all these measures is to develop
Azerbaijan's non-oil sector. Most of these instruments are financed
by the state budget and are directed not at specific projects, but
rather at implementing incentives to foster the sector's
development. That’s the key new aspect," Movsumov stressed.


According to him, investments within the framework of the budget
will continue as before.


"Investments within the budget framework are not decreasing;
they are continuing as planned. Funds are being allocated for
investments in relevant sectors, infrastructure projects, the
mining industry, and agriculture. At the same time, the plan
involves directing a portion of the funds toward incentives—meaning
the use of specific incentive tools to foster private sector
development rather than funding projects directly," added
Movsumov.