ArmInfo. Despite numerous negative factors, Armenia remains resilient and the economy continues to record good results, said Odile Renaud-Basso, the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), on May 15 at the Bank's Annual Meeting in Yerevan.
"In 2023, Armenia's GDP increased by 8.7%, which was due to strong demand for exports, double-digit growth in construction, and an increase in tourism and the IT sector," the EBRD President noted.
Odile Renaud-Basso noted that at the end of September 2023, Armenia faced a serious crisis in terms of a massive influx of refugees (the exodus of Armenians from Artsakh began on September 24, ed. note). She considers it a "miracle" how Armenia dealt with such a situation in such a short time.
However, many challenges remain, and therefore there is a need to develop short- and medium-term programs. Refugees should be integrated into the labor market, and measures should be developed to stimulate the development of human capital, the President of the Bank believes.
According to Statistical Data, Armenia's GDP growth slowed down to 8.7% in 2023 (from 12.6% in 2022), to 9.503 trillion drams ($24.2 billion) at current prices. The GDP deflator index also decreased - to 102.8% from 108% in 2022. The drivers of GDP growth in 2023 were largely the trade sector - 25.7%, the construction sector - 14.8%, the service sector - 10.3%, and to a slightly lesser extent the industrial sector - 4.1%, and the agricultural sector was in a decline of 0.3%. A year earlier, in 2022, GDP growth came from all areas: the service sector - by 28.2%, the trade sector - by 17%, the energy complex - by 16.1%, the construction sector - by 12.5%, the industrial sector - by 7 .9% and the agricultural sector - by 0.4%. Against this background, the growth rate of Armenia's foreign trade turnover also stalled from 68.6% to 46%, which was provoked by a slowdown in the growth of both exports from 77.7% to 55.3% and imports from 63.5% to 40.2%.
EBRD is the leading institutional investor in Armenia. The bank has invested over 2 billion 087 million euros in 210 projects in Armenia. The current portfolio of projects is estimated at 339 million euros. , stated on the Bank's website.
Over the past 5 years, the EBRD has invested EUR640 million in Armenia, supporting private sector development, infrastructure improvements, renewable energy production and rural digitalization. The current portfolio of projects is estimated at 339 million euros. To date, the EBRD has invested more than EUR 2.1 billion in 210 projects across Armenia.
