Who We Are 

The USAID-funded Azerbaijan Business Assistance & Development (ABAD) Program is implemented by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) with partners Chemonics and FLAG International. The program delivers assistance primarily through rural Marketing Centers staffed by business advisors who live and work in the regions. 


Our Mission 

The ABAD program’s aim is to stimulate rural economic growth by helping farmers and small private enterprises increase their sales and create new employment opportunities. ABAD achieves these goals by working directly with rural enterprises and local communities to create and strengthen market-linkages, improve technical and business skills, and improve the regulatory environment. ABAD focuses its efforts in the economic corridors shown on the map at right. These corridors represent traditional trade routes to Georgia (through Zagatala), Russia (through Guba) and Iran (through Lenkoran). The ABAD program utilizes these rural trade networks to link rural areas with intermediate cities, and these in turn with the demands of larger markets in Baku and outside the country.  

Our Partners 

The ABAD program works directly with farmers, producers and small enterprises in the economic corridors, and with any businesses whose input needs can be met by these enterprises. The program seeks to link its rural clients with local, domestic and international markets. We welcome cooperation with enterprises run by women and other vulnerable groups. 

How We Work

The ABAD program employs a market-driven approach. Clients are encouraged to “produce what they can sell” rather than to “sell what they can produce” which was a common practice in the planned economy. ABAD business advisors identify specific product demands in the market, such as grade, quantity, packaging and delivery requirements, and then work to enable enterprises and farmers to meet those demands. The business advisors also serve as facilitators who help bring buyers and sellers together, creating new market linkages and strengthening existing ones. The ABAD program’s focus on community participation ensures that program assistance benefits the farmers and small-holders that provide critical market inputs. In addition to the business advisors’ familiarity with local economies and networks of contacts, the Marketing Centers provide a variety of benefits to their clients. They can help access technical, market and business information, provide consultation from local and international experts, and provide advice and consultation on obtaining access to credit, including equipment and machinery leases. In some cases business advisors may be able to facilitate grant support to defray the cost of new equipment and machinery. The ABAD Marketing Centers are committed to providing the help needed to link their clients to their markets. 

Start Working with ABAD 

ABAD promotes opportunities in select regions of Azerbaijan with the potential to increase commerce and create new jobs. If you are an entrepreneur, enterprise, farmer or producer working in the regions and you are looking to:

• expand and diversify your market;
• improve the quality of what you produce;
• adapt new technologies to meet market demands;
• explore your finance and credit options;
• strengthen relationships with buyers and/or suppliers;
• apply new organizational or production flows in accordance with the market. 

then, please, contact ABAD representatives for more information: small holder producers, enterprises and entrepreneurs in the corridors should contact the nearest Marketing Center. Others please contact ABAD office in Baku.

Our address:

11, Vagif Street
AZ 4000, Guba, Azerbaijan
Tel: (+994 169) 5 60 93
Guba Marketing Center