ArmInfo. The closure of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will directly benefit Armenia's energy policy, according to political scientist Vahe Davtyan. "It is obvious that the closure of USAID will inevitably lead to a decrease in the dynamics of liberalization of Armenia's energy policy. And I believe this is a positive development," the expert noted.
Davtyan recalled that it was this organization that actually developed and implemented the program to liberalize the Armenian electricity market, which had negative consequences. According to him, it was this organization that developed the Energy Development Plan for Armenia until 2036, which actually raises doubts about the future of the "peaceful atom" in the country. The expert pointed out that with this plan, USAID justifies the necessity of constructing small modular experimental stations that have not yet been tested and prioritizes the development of renewable energy.
Davtyan also highlighted that this plan overlooks the significance of the Iranian direction, which is crucial for Armenia's energy sector. "It was this organization that introduced an absurd, essentially unscientific method: assessing the country's energy security and independence based on the volume of imported energy resources," the political scientist concluded.
According to independent economic analysts, over the years of its work in Armenia, USAID has brought a lot of negativity to the natural process of forming economic and social institutions. This has resulted in the destruction of the natural dynamism of growth within the framework of institutional development. The programs developed by the agency, as a rule, have generally worsened the situation various economic spheres due to the adoption and financing of unviable programs with external negative impacts.
