C H A R T E R of the STATE COMMITTEE for FAMILY, WOMEN and CHILDREN AFFAIRS

Approved by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, dated August 9, 2006

I. General Regulations

1.The State Committee for Family, Women and Children’s Issues (henceforth – the Committee) is a central executive power body implementing and regulating the state policy on family, women and children’s issues (henceforth – appropriate issues).

2.The Committee in its work is guided by the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Azerbaijan, decrees and orders of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, decisions and orders of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan, international treaties supported by the Republic of Azerbaijan and its Charter.

3.In execution of its duties the Committee acts in interrelations with other executive power bodies, local self-governing bodies and NGOs.

4.The Committee possesses independent balance, state property, treasury and bank accounts according to the state legislation seal with coat of arms of the Republic of Azerbaijan and name of the Committee carved on it, appropriate stamps and forms.

5.The material resources and activity of the Committee are financed by the state budget of the Republic of Azerbaijan and other legal sources which are not contradicted with the existing state legislation.

6.The Committee is situated in the city of Baku.

II. The Committee’s work trends

7.The Committee’s work trends are the followings:

7.1 The Committee takes part in formation of the state policy in appropriate field and provides its realization;

7.2 The Committee provides the development of the appropriate field;

7.3 The Committee acts in other trends defined by the state legislation.

III. Responsibilities of the Committee

8. According to the trends of activities defined by this Charter the responsibilities of the Committee are the followings:

8.1 Ensure human and civil rights and freedoms, particularly those of women and children and prevent violation of these rights within its authority;

8.2 Implement normative regulation in the appropriate field concerning its competencies given by the legislation;

8.3 Participate in elaboration of state program drafts in the appropriate field;

8.4 Ensure implementation of state programs and development conceptions within its authority;

8.5 Coordinate other executive bodies’ work in the appropriate field;

8.6 Ensure implementation of the national treaties ratified by the Republic of Azerbaijan within its authority;

8.7 Implement state family policy;

8.8 Explore social problems of refugees and forced migrants (children and women) and less provided families and raise questions afore the appropriate state bodies in order to resolve them;

8.9 Provide advice-giving company with appropriate state bodies in order to study bases of modern management and market economy, implementation of woman entrepreneurship, formation of family agriculture;

8.10 Provide taking measures and elaborating projects with appropriate organizations on gaining various new professions and increasing specializations of women in order to implement an employment strategy according to the state legislation;

8.11 Raise appropriate petitions in order to resolve problems of martyr’s families lost their men, single mothers, especially disabled women and children by state bodies;

8.12 Provide training of staff in appropriate field, improving professionalism and specialization of employees;

8.13 Implement in appropriate field modern scientific achievements and provide carrying out and implementation of scientific researches taking into account a progressive international experience;

8.14 Provide an effective use of budget means, credits, grants and other financial means in appropriate field appointment;

8.15 Take necessary measures to protect state secret and privacy regime according to the state legislation;

8.16 Provide population with the information on the Committee’s activity;

8.17 Take measures within its authorities to improve the structure and the activity of the Committee;

8.18 Consider applications and complains connected with the Committee’s activity and measures according to the state legislation;

8.19 Implement measures to improve social protection, labor and living conditions of the Committee’s staff;

8.20 Provide accountancy according to the state legislation.

8.21 Fulfill other duties set by the legislation in compliance with trends of activities.

IV. The Rights of the Committee

9. The Committee has the following rights to fulfill its duties:

9.1 Give proposals on main directions of the state policy in the appropriate field;

9.2 Establish a unique information system in the appropriate field within its competence;

9.3 Organize systematic work with women and men in compliance with gender principles;

9.4 Participate in implementation of state programs on millennium development goals, poverty reduction, employment strategy within its competence;

9.5 Implement “healthy mother”, “healthy child” principles, to provide study of juridical knowledge on the direction of children’s rights protection

9.6 Carry out supervision under the implementation of state woman policy, giving children from child institutions for foster-care, protection of their rights and legal interests, and social protection as well by departments within the Committee’s structure, to receive information on the way appropriate state bodies fulfill their duties in these directions;

9.7 Implement measures together with appropriate bodies and within its authorities on protection of the rights of women working in manufacture, raise issue of taking measures for appropriate bodies in case if violation of women’s rights by officials;

9.8 Elaborate legal act drafts in appropriate field and participate in their elaboration;

9.9 Stand out with the initiative to sign the international documents in the appropriate field;

9.10Send questionnaires to state and local authorities, physical and juridical persons about necessary information on the appropriate field and receive such information from them;

9.11 Cooperate with international organizations and appropriate bodies in foreign countries in accordance with established procedure and study foreign experience;

9.12Conduct researches, analysis and generalization on the appropriate field, prepare analytic information and give recommendations;

9.13Take measures on preparing specialists, their professional skills and professionalism of the Committee’s workers;

9.14Involve independent experts and specialists to its activity as defined by the legislation;

9.15Conduct different trainings, seminars and activities in the appropriate field;

9.16Publish special bulletins and other publications in accordance with established procedure, to create website and use it;

9.17Give proposals within its competence aimed at involvement of investments to the appropriate field;

9.18 Give proposals to conduct measures of the international importance in the appropriate field;

9.19Elaborate and implement projects covering television and radio programs in the appropriate field;

9.20Realize the rights on state property under its surveillance according to the legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan;

9.21Nominate active Committee workers for honorary titles and government prizes in accordance with established procedure;

9.22Realize the rights defined in the legislation according to work directions.

V. Organization of the Activity of the Committee

10. The apparatus of the Committee forms a unique system of the Committee. The Committee fulfills its duties by means of its apparatus.

11. The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan approves the Committee’s structure and defines the number of the apparatus workers.

12. The leader of the Committee is the chairman appointed and dismissed by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The chairman of the Committee carries personal responsibility for the fulfillment of the Committee’s duties and implementation of rights.

13. The chairman has one deputy-chairman appointed and dismissed by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

14. The chairman of the Committee:

14.1. Organizes and leads the Committee’s activities;

14.2. Approves charters of the Committee’s departments;

14.3. Approves the structure of the Committee’s apparatus, staff list and expenses within the structure defined, wages fund and number of employees;

14.4. Appoints and dismisses members of the apparatus staff, carries out measures on stimulation and administrative punishment;

14.5. Issues orders and decrees to be executed, adopts (signs) legal acts, arranges their execution and carries out supervision in compliance with the legislation;

14.6. Liquidates decisions of the Committee’s official persons controversial to the legislation;

14.7. Represents the Committee.

15. A colleague comprising of the chairman, deputy-chairman and chief staff members of the Committee is established. Experts and scientists can also be included into the Committee’s colleague.

16. The structure of the colleague and its members are approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

17. The Committee’s colleague discusses issues and adopts appropriate decisions concerning the Committee’s activities.

18. Sessions of the Committee’s colleague are valid if more than half of the colleague members participate in. The decrees of the Committee’s colleague are adopted through the simple set of votes. If the set of votes of the Committee’s colleague while adopting decisions is equal, the vote of the Committee’s chairperson shall be casting vote.

19. The decisions of the colleague are formalized in protocol and ratified by the Committee’s chairperson.

20. In case of discordance among the Committee’s colleague members the Committee’s chairperson implements her/his own decision by informing the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The Committee’s colleague members can send their personal opinions to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

21. Heads of other central executive bodies and organizations and even representatives of non-governmental organizations can be invited to the sessions of the Committee’s colleague if necessary.

22. A Scientific-methodical council on volunteer base within the Committee is established in order to study advanced experience and implement it. The charter on Scientific-methodical council is ratified by the Committee’s chairperson.