Entrepreneurship for Youth project summed up in Baku

The final conference of the Entrepreneurship for Youth project, implemented by the public association Junior Achievement Azerbaijan, partially funded by the EU and PASHA Bank, took place on June 23, Report informs.

Representatives of several state-owned enterprises, the private sector, and the head of the office of the Azerbaijani Education Ministry, Hasan Hasanli, and the head of the cooperation department of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Simona Gatti took part in the conference.

During the event, the public was presented with the project results implemented in 2018-2021. The project, implemented in cooperation with the Azerbaijan Micro-finance Association (AMFA) and Junior Achievement Estonia, aimed to develop students’ financial literacy and entrepreneurial skills. It covered 4,909 students and 170 teachers from secondary schools in Baku, Ganja, Gakh, Mingachevir, Khachmaz, Masalli, Gabala, and Zagatala.

Thus, two core learning resources on financial literacy and three on entrepreneurship were developed. As part of the project, trainings were organized for 170 teachers in both directions, and 100 teachers were accredited as trainers. Based on the developed educational resources, students of 48 general education and four vocational educational institutions were taught the basics of financial literacy and entrepreneurship in extracurricular activities.

In his welcoming speech, the Chairman of the Junior Achievement program, Bakhtiyar Akhundov, spoke about the importance of financial literacy in the modern world. He thanked investors for their contribution to youth development.

Head of the Cooperation Department of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Simona Gatti, in turn, noted that the EU continues to support Azerbaijan in human resources, digital technologies, and economic diversification. We have implemented very close work with teachers since teacher training is an essential part of the project.

“3,000 trained young people are at least 3,000 successful and financially literate people in the future. In this direction, we will continue to invest in such projects. Because entrepreneurship is the backbone of the economy, education and training play a fundamental role in human life,” said the board member of Pasha Bank Khayala Nagiyeva.