ArmInfo. 49 business environment improvement programs will be implemented in Armenia in 2020-2023. At the meeting of February 27, the RA Government approved the program of these events.
According to the Minister of Economy of the Republic of Armenia Tigran Khachatryan, the World Bank recommendations as part of the Doing Business 2020 report were taken into account when developing the document.
A number of programs will be launched in the current year, but its results will be tangible in 2-3 years. In particular, the programs will be aimed at accelerating the time for registration of companies, reducing the time for granting construction permits, registering property rights, attracting affordable loans, etc. An important place in the program will begin to acquire the quality of public services, tax administration, and the resolution of disputes in courts, in particular speed of bankruptcy proceedings. For the first time, three new indicators will be applied - the participation of business entities in the public procurement system and their relationship with government agencies, openness when attracting foreign specialists and the level of relations of private companies with the antitrust authority. The implementation of these programs, according to the Minister, will allow to improve the business environment in the country and increase the rating of Armenia in the World Bank report.
It should be noted that in the WB Doing Business 2020 report, Armenia ranked 47th out of 190 countries. In 2018-2019, a number of reforms were carried out to improve the sector of business regulation. In particular, according to the report, Armenia in recent years has carried out significant reforms in the fields of property registration, taxation, foreign trade and connecting consumers to the electricity grid. However, in the report, in 2020 Armenia worsened its position compared to 2019. One of the main reasons for this is that the position of the "Protecting Small Investors" index fell from 51st to 120th, due to a change in the World Bank's assessment methodology. In addition, the position of Armenia is rather low in terms of "Building Permit" and "Contract Execution". The program to improve the business environment of Armenia for 2019 consisted of 51 programs, 26 of which were implemented, work on 6 of them has not yet begun, and 19 are underway. The program of activities to improve the business environment for 2020-2023 includes both short-term and long-term actions, the implementation of which will lead to a significant improvement in the business and investment environment.
