Article 25 of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, adopted on November 12, 1995, under the leadership of National Leader Heydar Aliyev, establishes the right to equality, ensures equal rights and freedoms regardless of gender, and prohibits any limitations on human and citizen rights and freedoms based on gender.
This was stated by Anar Karimov, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Population during the panel session titled "Resilience in Equality – The Main Goal of Our Constitution’s Development Path" part of the conference on "Promoting Women’s Participation," organized by the State Committee for Family, Women, and Children’s Affairs in the framework of the “Year of the Constitution and Sovereignty”.
It was noted that Azerbaijan has ratified various conventions in the field of gender equality, including the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the International Labour Organization’s conventions on "Equal Remuneration For Men And Women Workers For Work Of Equal Value", "Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention", " Maternity Protection Convention", and others.
National legislation prohibits any discrimination between workers based on gender in employment relations, ensuring equal conditions and opportunities for both women and men in labour relations, as well as in the implementation of social security rights.
Reforms aimed at eliminating the wage gap between men and women were highlighted. It was reported that in recent years, legislative improvements in line with international standards have been made to increase women’s participation in the labour market, and as a result, Azerbaijan’s index in the World Bank’s "Women, Business, and Law" 2024 report ranking increased from 78,8 to 85.
The share of women in the working population is 48%, with approximately 500 000 labour contracts with women in the public sector and 330 000 in the private sector.
The State Employment Agency under the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of Population employed more than 55000 women last year, while 7400 women were involved in self-employment programs, and nearly 10000 women participated in vocational training programs.
It was also pointed out that a series of awareness-raising events within the "Gender Equality in Labour Relations – Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities" campaign had been carried out in 14 regions of the country over the past two years.
