Economy

Azerbaijans economy is regulated by the government with industry accounting for half the value of production.

Agriculture contributes a third of the value of industrial production. It is carried on largely by collectives and state-owned farms. About 70 per cent of the cultivated land is irrigated. Wheat, cotton, rice, fruits, vegetables, tea, and tobacco are grown. In addition, silkworms are also grown for the raw silk industry. Much land is used for raising livestock, chiefly sheep, cattle, and goats.. The Caspian Sea is a rich source of fish.

Petroleum is by far the most important mineral product, being Azerbaijans chief single source of income. Azerbaijan has productive oil fields along the Caspian coast, particularly along the Apsheron Peninsula near Baku. Iron, aluminum, copper, lead, and zinc ores, sulfur, natural gas and salt are mined.

Manufacturing industries produce a wide range of goods, notably petroleum products, chemicals, machines, mineral products, processed foods, iron and steel products, textiles, and clothing. Baku, Ganja, Saki, Xankandi, and Naxcivan are the leading industrial centers. Major cities are served by rail, highway, and air.

Azerbaijan has a limited road and railway system. Most of the countrys trade on the Caspian Sea is handled by a port at Baku. The countrys main airport is located at Baku.

The countrys main radio and television stations are situated in, and broadcast from, Baku. Newspapers and Magazines are published in Azerbaijani and Russian.

In 1989, Azerbaijan had a population of 7,029,000. Baku, the capital and largest city, had a population of 1,757,000. About three-fourths of the people are ethnic Azerbaijanis, a Turkic-speaking people related culturally to the Iranians; the rest are largely Great Russians, Lezgins, and Armenians. Islam is the principal religion. Nearly all of Azerbaijan's people are literate. Baku State University is the largest university.