BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 28. A total of 168 million manat ($98.8 million) was allocated from the state budget for the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Azerbaijan last year, Trend reports.
This issue was reflected in the draft law "On the implementation of the state budget of Azerbaijan for 2024," discussed at today’s meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship.
In total, 195.9 million manat ($116 million) was spent from the state budget for international, country-level, and similar events.
This amount included 10 million manat ($5.9 million) for the 29th session of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), 4.5 million manat ($2.7 million) for the Investment Promotion Forum and other promotional events, 3.5 million manat ($2.1 million) for the 6th World Intercultural Dialogue Forum, 2.6 million manat ($1.5 million) for the 11th Global Baku Forum, 2.3 million manat ($1.4 million) for the Karabakh International Music Festival, and one million manat ($590,000) for the 3rd meeting of the Parliamentary Network of the Non-Aligned Movement in Switzerland.
Besides, 767,400 manat ($452,000) was allocated for events related to the Chairmanship of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly, 611,700 manat ($360,000) for the 29th Annual Conference and General Assembly of the International Association of Prosecutors, 500,000 manat ($295,000) for the 2nd International Conference dedicated to the “International Day to Combat Islamophobia,” 446,400 manat ($263,000) for Vagif Poetry Days, and 274,400 manat ($162,000) for investment support events in liberated territories.
The total allocation also included 234,000 manat ($138,000) for the 9th International Singers Competition named after Bulbul, 209,800 manat ($124,000) for the 13th Plenary Session of TURKPA and related meetings, 199,900 manat ($118,000) for international conferences and exhibitions abroad, 196,900 manat ($116,000) for the International Parliamentary Conference on the 106th anniversary of the Azerbaijani Parliament, 193,800 manat ($114,000) for the 16th Uzeyir Hajibayli International Music Festival, 77,800 manat ($46,000) for the Green Energy Forum, 60,000 manat ($35,000) and 58,800 manat ($35,000) for congresses and conferences of the Turkic Judicial Training Network during Azerbaijan’s 2024 chairmanship, 48,600 manat ($28,000) for the annual meeting of the INTOSAI Working Group on Public Debt Audit, 43,900 manat ($26,000) for the international conference dedicated to World Freedom of Information Day, 40,200 manat ($24,000) for the 11th Meeting of the Legal Affairs and International Relations Commission of the Turkic Parliamentary Assembly, 40,100 manat ($24,000) for Baku Energy Week, 36,200 manat ($21,000) for the EUROSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing, 33,100 manat ($20,000) for energy sector events within COP29, and 24,000 manat ($14,000) for high-level meetings under the Almaty Process Chairmanship of Azerbaijan.
Additionally, 21.6 million manat (approximately $12.8 million) was used for international activities and similar expenses. This included 135,700 manat ($80,000) for the UNESCO National Commission of Azerbaijan, 496,300 manat ($294,000) for the International Development Assistance Department of the Foreign Ministry, 379,500 manat ($225,000) for NATO “Partnership for Peace” and “Individual Partnership Action Plan” programs, 86,000 manat ($51,000) for supporting the Heydar Aliyev Park in Bucharest, Romania, 44,700 manat ($26,500) for the repatriation of Azerbaijani citizens from Syria, 403,100 manat ($239,000) for the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe on combating antisemitism and other forms of intolerance, 721,200 manat ($427,000) for maintaining the Azerbaijan Exhibition and Trade Center in Moscow, 33,000 manat ($19,500) for maintaining the Azerbaijan pavilion at the Dubai Expo 2020, 297,500 manat ($176,000) for the secondment of two Azerbaijani judges to the Secretariat of the European Court of Human Rights, 237,200 manat ($140,000) for measures regarding Azerbaijani nationals illegally residing in Turkey, 18.3 million manat ($10.8 million) for participation in the Osaka Kansai Expo 2025, 74,800 manat ($44,000) for the secondment of an employee of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Secretariat in Bonn, Germany, and 366,300 manat ($217,000) for other expenses.
