ArmInfo. Armenia is interested in signing an intergovernmental agreement (G2G) with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in order to create a solid foundation for long-term cooperation in the diamond industry.
As reported by the press service of the Ministry of Economy, this became known following the meeting in the UAE of the RA Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan with the Deputy Prime Minister of the DRC Ghislain Nyembo Mbwigya.
The parties discussed the possibilities of expanding cooperation in the strategic sphere of supplying rough diamonds from the DR Congo to Armenia.
, - noted Gevorg Papoyan.
The Minister also presented the government's project , which can become an important component of both regional and broader economic cooperation.
According to the latest data from the Customs Service (first half of 2024), the Democratic Republic of the Congo appears only in the list of importing countries. In particular, during the reporting period, 18 animals (live) were imported from the DR Congo for a total customs value of $900.
According to the RA Statistical Committee, transactions with precious metals and stones in Armenia's foreign trade have begun to decline since 2025, amounting to 20% ($558.2 million) in total in January- February against 61.6% ($3.6 billion) a year ago. This category of goods became the main reason for the deterioration in the annual dynamics of the country's foreign trade turnover, which fell from 200% growth to a 52% decline.
Thus, in January-February 2025, the share of imports and exports of precious metals and stones in total trade turnover fell to 13.5% and 31.1%, respectively, while in the same period last year it was 55% and 70%.
In terms of volume, during the reporting period, these products were imported for $234.9 million and exported for $323.3 million: over the year, their imports fell by 86.7%, and exports - by 82.1%.
