ArmInfo. In 2017 the draft budget will allocate nearly 409 bln AMD for social security, Armenian Deputy Minister of Finance Atom Janjughazyan said at today's budget hearings in Parliament.
He said that as compared with the current year, the expenses for the specified field will grow by 1bln 9 mln due to the growth in the number of funded pension system participants and the changes in the utility tariffs. As much as 248.4 bln AMD will be allocated for pensions and 97 bln AMD for various allowances.
For his part, Armenian Minister of Labor and Social Issues Artem Asatryan said that in 2017 the minimum salary in Armenia will be retained at 55 thsd AMD. No increase in pensions is expected either. "In 2017 as much as 223.5 bln AMD will be allocated for labor pensions, i.e. 300 mln less than in 2016, as the lists of the pensioners have been specified," he said.
The minister stressed that the number of pensioners has slightly grown from 456960 to 459682. He added that in 2017 a pilot program will be launched to finance the wages of the people with autism. The program will include 30 persons. "As much as 26.2 mln AMD will be provided for social and psychological support to people with autism," he said.
Asatryan also noted that the program on payment of compensations for industrial injuries of 450 citizens. A total of 90.2 mln AMD will be allocated for the program, i.e. 7.6 mln AMD less than in 2016," he stressed.
To note, in 2017 the state budget revenues will be increased by 27 bln AMD to 1 trillion 210 bln AMD, expenditures will be reduced by about 13 bln AMD to 1 trillion 360 bln AMD. The deficit will be 150.1 bln AMD. In the structure of revenues, 1 trillion 135 bln AMD will be tax revenues and state duties (1 065 bln AMD in 2016), 31 bln AMD - official grants (31.5 bln AMD in 2016), 44.1 bln AMD - other revenues (25.8 bln AMD).
In the Armenian state budget of 2016, expenditures total 1 trillion 377 bln AMD (25.3% expenses-to-GDP ratio), revenues - 1 trillion 186.3 bln AMD (21.8% revenues-to-GDP ratio), and the deficit - 197 bln AMD (3.5% deficit-to- GDP ratio). The GDP real growth for 2016 is estimated at 2.2%, GDP deflator index - at 4%, 12-month inflation - 4% (+1.5%), and state budget deficit - at 3.5% of GDP.
