Ex-Prime Minister of Armenia criticized investment concept of authorities

ArmInfo. The Former Prime Minister of Armenia and the "Freedom" Party leaeder Hrant Bagratyan, speaking today at the Press Club "Mirror", criticized the investment concept of the Armenian authorities, calling it unfounded.

According to Bagratyan, the political force and the economic leadership of the state in its investment policy pins hopes with the rich representatives of the Armenian Diaspora, whereas the population of Armenia is not involved in this process. In this vein, he recalled the elementary truths that "investment is the result of savings". The lack of understanding, according to Bagratyan, leads to the fact that the tax code is adopted in the state, which reduces the tax burden for large enterprises and enhances it for small and medium-sized businesses. "The new Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan could freeze the procedure of the adoption of such a code in September, but he did not", said Ex-Prime Minister.

Bagratyan sees the essential resource for the development of domestic investment, in the policy of sterilization of excess liquidity in the market, the emerging in connection with the receipt of a large volume of private transfers ($2bln transfer from $10bln in GDP - Bagratyan), thus, boosting the general price level in the state. He noted that the Central Bank of Armenia opposes this policy, and therefore significantly reduces the investment attractiveness of the state.  Bagratyan considers that it is not faithful to provide the Central Bank the authority to regulate the activities of investment funds, in connection with which, in the state has not appeared any similar structure. He believes that it is through the investment funds the broad layers of the population can participate in the process of transformation of savings into investments.  Without realizing it, the government actually gave economic development of the country at the mercy of large oligarchs. At the same time Bagratyan acknowledged that after 15 years of struggle for the realization of the idea of "sterilization" and of large sovereign investment fund creation, the new prime minister included it in his program, but the ex-prime minister expressed doubt that the financial mega-regulator will allow it to carry out.

He considers that over the past 20 years, 400 thousand jobs were created in Armenia, but also lost their jobs 800 thousand people as a result of the wrong investment policy. "Oligarchs are openening shopping malls one by one, and the government is silently watching the way with thousands of shops are closed", said Bagratyan.

To note, the level of direct foreign investments in the Armenian economy in 2016 dropped to $90mln, being reduced annually in the last 5 years by 40-50%. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy of the state, recently submitted a program under which the implementation of investment programs totaling $495mln creating about 6 thousand new jobs in the state is expected in 2017. At the same time, the government addressed the rich representatives of the Armenian Diaspora who live abroad, to increase their investments in the Armenian economy.