BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 9. A Women’s Creativity Forum was held in Baku as part of the ongoing “OIC Cultural Festival: Baku Creative Week-2025,” organized by the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), in partnership with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Trend reports.
The forum was co-organized by the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan, the Women Development Organization (WDO) of the OIC, the Women’s Entrepreneurship Development Association in Azerbaijan (AQSIA), and the Creative Azerbaijan platform.
Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation; Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar, KADEM Chair of the Board of Trustees; Afnan Al-Shuaiby, Executive Director of the WDO; as well as female innovators and entrepreneurs from Kazakhstan, Bahrain, and Uzbekistan attended the forum.
In her opening address, Afnan Al-Shuaiby expressed her gratitude to the organizers. She emphasized the crucial role of women in shaping a knowledge-based society and reaffirmed the commitment to supporting their empowerment and contributions. “Our main mission is to enable women to realize all of their potential as entrepreneurs and cultural innovators. We are ready to mobilize all our resources to help women advance, promote their work, and implement their creative projects,” she said.
Highlighting women’s central role in creativity, Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar stressed that women are key to passing down values across generations as primary carriers of cultural heritage. “The art of carpet weaving in Azerbaijan stands as one of the most beautiful examples of this. Similarly, Iznik and Kütahya ceramics and other art schools were shaped by the creative spirit, craftsmanship, and aesthetic taste of women. Turkish motifs and their embodiment in art clearly demonstrate women’s role throughout history,” she noted.
In her remarks, AQSIA Chairwoman Sakina Babayeva described the forum as an ideal platform for exploring opportunities and future prospects for women in the creative field, also highlighting strong state support in Azerbaijan.
A conceptual visual composition inspired by Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi’s quote “Come out of the circle of time and step into the circle of love,” was showcased following the official opening of the forum.
The illustrative part of the project was presented based on the works of artist Leyla Aliyeva. The author of the visual concept is Honored Artist Sabina Shikhlinskaya, and the music composer is Orkhan Aghayev (DJ Pancho).
The Women’s Creativity Forum also featured discussions on the topics “Enhancing global trade for women in creative industries” and “The role of innovation, technology and investment in women’s empowerment.” Speakers highlighted support for women entrepreneurs, strengthening global ties, and leveraging innovation for economic growth, reaffirming a shared commitment to women’s leadership in creative fields and fostering international cooperation to drive transformation.
