ArmInfo. For 7 months of 2021, Armenia's public debt increased by more than $ 1 billion, reaching $ 8 billion 973 million.
According to the data of the Ministry of Finance of Armenia, the public debt of the Republic of Armenia from $ 7 billion 968.5 million, formed by December 31, 2020, by July 31 of this year, increased by $ 1bln. 005 million. At the same time, over its 28-year history (since Armenia gained independence), the Republic of Armenia has attracted borrowings in the amount of about $ 6.8 billion, and over the past three years "managed" to increase the public debt by $ 2 billion 106 million.
So, at the end of December 2017, the total public debt of Armenia reached $ 6.774 billion, and by the time the new government was formed, at the end of April 2018, this figure was $ 6,867 billion. By the end of 2018, the public debt increased to $ 6,922 billion, 2019 - up to $ 7 321 billion. By the end of 2020, the public debt increased by $ 647 million - up to $ 7.968 billion, of which $ 7.509 billion is government debt (external debt - $ 5.593 billion, and domestic debt - $ 1.915 billion). Meanwhile, according to the approved state budget, in 2020 Armenia planned to attract 171.6 billion drams or $ 360.2 million (the estimated exchange rate of the US dollar to the Armenian dram is 476.46), but due to the pandemic and the war, the figure almost doubled.
As a result, if the ratio of government debt to GDP by the end of 2019 was 49.9%, then by the end of 2020 the level of government debt to GDP reached 63.5%. As a result, Armenia "went beyond" the limits allowed by law. To recall, the country's fiscal rules allow for an increase in the indicator to 60% of GDP, and if the rules are violated, they oblige the Armenian government to submit a draft macro and fiscal measures that will allow the republic to return to 60% within the next 5 years. In January-July 2021, according to the Ministry of Finance of Armenia, the government debt increased from $ 7 billion 508.5 million (by the end of 2020) to $ 8 billion 507.8 million - by about $ 999 million, and the external debt (debt obligations of Armenia to international organizations and foreign states, funds received from the emission of Eurobonds) from $ 5 billion 599.5 million to $ 6 billion 212.3 million - for $ 613 million. In particular, on January 26 this year, Armenia has placed among international investors the 4th issue of 10-year debt securities in the amount of $ 750 million. The established annual yield on bonds of the 4th issue turned out to be lower than the yield on the 3rd issue - 3.875% versus 4.625%. During the reporting period, domestic debt increased from $ 1 billion 909.0 million by $ 386 million to $ 2 billion 295.5 million. Thus, in the structure of government debt 76% are debt obligations in foreign currency.
Meanwhile, according to the forecasts laid down in the basis of the state budget for the current year, as of December 31, 2021, the government debt was planned at 4.522 billion drams or $ 8.551 billion - 66% of GDP. Accordingly, 480.4 billion drams were planned for the repayment and servicing of the government debt of Armenia (the estimated rate of the Armenian dram to the dollar is 493.76 drams). How much does Armenia owe and to whom?
For January-July of this year alone, AMD 97.4 billion was allocated to pay interest rates on the government debt. The largest creditor of Armenia at present is the World Bank - the share of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association accounts for 38.6% of the state debt of the Republic of Armenia.
The second major creditor is the Asian Development Bank - 16.8%, the third place is held by the International Monetary Fund - 7.6%, followed by the Eurasian Development Bank with 7.1%. Among the large creditor countries of Armenia, the first place is taken by the Russian Federation - 7.3% of the national debt, Germany - 6%, France - 3.2%, Japan - 4.6%, China - 0.5%, and the USA - 0.3 %. Abu Dhabi Development Bank - 0.1%.
