Azerbaijani State Media Development Assistance Fund aims to promote free media and improve journalists’ social conditions: Presidential Administration official

"The State Media Assistance Fund aims to promote free media, to support it and improve media's material and technical basis and help improve social condition of journalists," Azerbaijani Presidential Administration Public and Political Department Head Ali Hasanov told Trend News.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev decreed to establish State Fund for the Media Development Assistance under President earlier last week.

According to the decree, the establishment of the State Fund for the Media Development Assistance under President was approved.

The Cabinet of Ministers is instructed to allot places, to ensure material and technical basis, to perform estimation within a month, to design a pay-roll, to define the number and salaries of employees and provide the media with a state support while projecting the public budget.

The Justice Ministry is instructed to register the Fund in 15 days.

Hasanov said the Fund aims to promote freedom of speech and expression and assists with the media outlets that are committed to this principle.

He said the media outlets what will be allocated funds have not been classified.

"The regulations of the Fund do not classify the media outlets. We will hold discussions with the media about which outlets will be allocated funds. The newspapers and news agencies who contribute to the freedom of speech in Azerbaijan are the main point. The level of their contribution to media development and public funds to be allocated for them will be discussed and media outlets will be discussed," Hasanov added.

He said the key example of freedom of speech and media is the daily media outlets.

"There are some outlets that come out twice or thrice a week. Therefore I think the media outlets must be sorted out once again. They will be allocated funds depending on their work for the media freedom," Hasanov said.

Over 2,600 outlets were registered in Azerbaijan for the last five years and 298 last year.

/Trend News/