BAKU: Azerbaijan accents reforms on boosting the welfare of low-income and socially vulnerable people, the country’s Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Population Sahil Babayev said during the forum themed “Public Processes at the Media Level” in Baku, Trend reports.

According to him, over the past five years, the minimum pension in Azerbaijan has increased by 2.5 times and the average pension by 2.4 times, while payments to the most vulnerable groups of people, such as recipients of social benefits, disabled persons, large families, and those receiving age-related benefits, have increased by five times.

“In 2018, the Azerbaijani government spent 300 million manat ($176) on social benefits and pensions, while last year this figure reached 1.9 billion manat ($1.1 billion), increasing by more than five times. This is a clear indicator of our state’s socially oriented policy.

In just the first quarter of this year, through assistance programs and pensions, targeted assistance to our citizens amounted
to 2.18 billion manat ($1.28 billion), which is 12 percent, or 224 million manat ($131.7 million) more than in the same period last year,” the minister added.

To note, the forum has been organized by the Media Development Agency of Azerbaijan.

The event will include panel sessions on “Proper use of media in the fight against drug addiction,” “Proper media coverage of social issues and sensitive topics such as domestic violence and early marriage,” “Effective fight against cyberbullying in the media and cyberawareness,” and “Media Agenda in the Year of Solidarity for a Green World”.

Source: Trend News Agency