Azerbaijan celebrates International Women's Day

Today marks International Women's Day.

Report informs that Azerbaijan is one of the countries that widely celebrates International Women's Day. March 8 is an official holiday in the country.

As every year, the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, congratulated the women of the country on March 8 - International Women's Day.

In his congratulatory message, the head of state noted that the fact that Azerbaijani women gained the right to vote and be elected earlier than women in a number of advanced countries of the world is one of the significant facts of modern history:

"Their pioneering steps in the most diverse fields of culture, science, education, and healthcare among the women of the Muslim East are a testament to their exceptional creative potential. It is commendable that our modern young women respect these traditions, diligently uphold the principle of generational moral inheritance, and successfully continue the path of their enlightened and intellectual predecessors."

Azerbaijani women have always deserved special respect in the society.

Some 47% of the 102,300 babies born last year were girls. Over 80% of teachers in general educational institutions of the country, 80% in secondary specialized educational institutions, 60% in higher schools, and two-thirds of doctors are women. Girls comprise 45% of students in general educational institutions, 60% of students in secondary specialized educational institutions, and half of the students in higher schools.

Women have an exceptional role in the development of science. Over 60% of scientific workers are women.

Azerbaijani women actively participate in the socio-economic life of the country, and their share in the total number of employed people, according to preliminary data, is 48 percent. The share of women among civil servants is 29.7%, and among individual entrepreneurs - 23.3%.

The number of female deputies in the Milli Majlis is also increasing. If in 1990, 4.3% of all deputies were women, and in 2000 - 10.7%, today the share of female deputies in the country has reached 20.8%.

One of the noteworthy facts is the increase in the number of women receiving driver's licenses for driving vehicles from year to year. At the same time, the share of women in the total number of those receiving driver's licenses increased from 4.6% in 2008 to 15.9% last year.

Thus, Azerbaijani women actively participate in both the socio-economic and socio-political life of the country.