Many of Economy Ministry`s  programs  are ahead of their time: Gevorg  Papoyan

ArmInfo. Armenian Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan believes that in the past 7-8 years, the authorities have managed to create a solid foundation for  long-term economic growth. He stated this on September 24 during a  panel discussion "Armenia's New Reality as an Economic Shock,"  in  response to a question  whether the recent high GDP growth  was a  short-term phenomenon or whether the authorities had created an  appropriate foundation for long-term growth.

According to Papoyan, since 2018 (the year Nikol Pashinyan was  elected prime minister following the "Velvet Revolution" - ed.),  cumulative GDP growth has reached 42.5%. In 2024, economic growth was  5.9%, and GDP per capita increased by 4.9% compared to 2023, doubling  from 2018. "This not only indicates stable growth but also  an  improvement in citizens' quality of life," the Minister of Economy  asserts.

This trend continued in 2025: Armenia's GDP grew by 5.9% in the  second quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year.   According to the Minister, there are factors that contributed to GDP  growth, some of which may have been short-term. However, there are  also factors that have created a solid foundation for growth.  Specifically, in 2017, labor productivity in the country per worker  or per hour worked was $5.6. In 2024, this figure reached $10.3. This  was facilitated by the economic modernization support program aimed  at stimulating production, thanks to which many companies modernized  their fixed assets, including production lines, Papoyan is convinced.

"I have asked about the lack of issues during the grape harvesting  process. I was told it was because of the purchase of new  equipment.  It allows for increased purchasing, greater storage, and production  of a higher- quality product," he said.

The Ministry of Economy also focused on developing the capital market  and infrastructure investment.  Thus, the number of participants in  programs adopted in 2022-2023, particularly the "Infrastructure for  Investment" program and the state program to facilitate the issuance  of equity (shares) and debt (bonds) securities, as well as credit  rating procedures, has "grown exponentially." The Minister noted that  the Ministry of Economy's programs are sometimes even ahead of their  time.  Specifically, the Export Strategy was adopted before August 8  (Washington Declarations - ed.), but the ideas contained in it were  only able to materialize in the future after the signing of these  documents.