Khankendi, Azerbaijan - July 03, 2025 On July 3, Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, visited the Businesstex JV sewing factory, a joint Azerbaijani-Uzbek enterprise in Khankendi, to review its operations. The factory produces 150 types of men’s clothing, 300 types of women’s clothing, and 150 types of children’s clothing using various fabrics. Plans are in place to produce men’s shirts, special-purpose garments, and military uniforms in the future. Currently, the factory manufactures 2,500 units of various knitwear products daily, with plans to increase this to 10,000 units. Eighty percent of the products are intended for export to various countries. In the initial phase of the project, 250 professionally trained individuals have been employed, with a total of 500 jobs expected to be created. The factory primarily employs residents returning to territories liberated from occupation and those from surrounding districts. The initial investment value of the project is 6 million manat, with joint industrial cooperation established for raw material procurement. The factory operates using raw materials from Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, and China. The Azerbaijan Business Development Fund (ABDF), under the Ministry of Economy, provided a concessional loan of 3.5 million manat for the factory’s establishment, along with approximately 640,000 manat in exemptions from VAT and customs duties. The factory’s operations will significantly contribute to the growth of non-oil exports in the region. The Khankendi sewing factory was established in line with the directives of the heads of state of Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan to deepen economic and investment cooperation. This joint Azerbaijani-Uzbek enterprise serves as a symbol of successful collaboration between the two countries. The project not only creates new opportunities for the development of light industry in Azerbaijan but also contributes to strengthening the traditional friendship and economic partnership between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.