The Ministry of Culture supports amateur arts and fosters people’s creativity through a network of cultural houses, clubs, and relevant centres. To a small extent, some clubs are associated with the State Oil Company (SOCAR), the Confederation of Trade Unions, and other organisations. According to state statistics, as of the end of 2023, the total number of clubs funded by the state stands at 2,058, comprising 323 in urban areas and 1,735 in rural regions. The overall number of seats in the auditoriums and lecture halls of these clubs totals 299,570, which equates to 30 per 1,000 of the population.
Cultural clubs and houses of culture provide the background and conditions for club circles, amateur art groups and unions, interest clubs, amateur associations, art circles and collectives, technical creativity courses and classes, as well as children’s circles and collectives. Clubs supported by the Ministry of Culture offered 3,569 different types of cultural leisure activities, with almost 30,000 active participants involved. These amounts encompass 1,435 child hobby groups and collectives, with a total of up to 10,500 children participating. Events organised in the fields of people’s creativity and intangible cultural heritage at club-type cultural institutions encompass amateur concerts, performances, spectacles, games, festivals, competitions, fairs, exhibitions, excursions, tours, and conferences, seminars.
Over the last decade, the Ministry of Culture has initiated the reorganisation of the cultural houses and community cultural clubs’ system, aiming to broaden social participation in cultural life under current economic circumstances. This initiative involved setting aside non-working functions and developing new forms, serving as infrastructural units for intangible cultural heritage. Established city and town centres of culture, along with their local lore, folklore, and artisanal branches, serve this idea by attracting relevant masters, performers, collectives, researchers, NGOs, and private structures.
The technical conditions of most club buildings are not sufficiently satisfactory. The number of club buildings requiring major repairs stands at 999, which is 45.7% of the total, while the number of club buildings in a state of emergency amounts to 94, or 4.3%. The club staff’s educational attainment is also unsatisfactory. Of the total number of cultural and educational employees in clubs, 5,195 people, only 9.0% hold higher education in culture and art, 9.7% have higher education in fields other than culture and art, and 21.3% have a secondary specialised education in culture and art.
A social survey was conducted in February 2024 to effectively organise activities related to forming a new national cultural model, “Culture for All,” proposed by the draft “Azerbaijani Culture—2040” Concept of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The survey identified the challenges facing the state in the cultural sector and ensured public participation in developing the Concept. According to the survey results, most respondents (78%) identify culture with art. Under “national and spiritual values”, 69% of respondents understand customs and traditions, 64% understand history and culture, and 43% understand moral rules. The most visited cultural institutions and events, according to respondents, were libraries (29%), concerts (16%), and museums (15%). The least visited were reserves (only 3%), exhibitions (6%), theatres (11%), and others (7%). 54% of respondents were satisfied with the demonstrated creative examples, 16% were unsatisfied, and another 16% considered them poorly consistent with modern requirements. The vast majority of respondents – 68% – expressed a desire to engage in creativity, and only 1% thought it a waste of time. Respondents considered the following measures necessary for the development of culture: improving the professionalism of employees (21%), increasing funds allocated to the cultural sector (20%), developing infrastructure and making services more accessible (17%), stimulating creativity and innovation (12%), and cooperation with other countries (12%), expanding public-private partnerships (11%). 42% of respondents positively assessed the international promotion of Azerbaijani culture, 32% considered it satisfactory, 11% thought it unsatisfactory, and 15% were unaware of it.
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