Armenia's Economic Pulse

[armnuke]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Honestly the more time I spend in Armenia, and the more I realize how full of it everyone in this country is, the more faith I develop in our government. It's unbelievable how misinformed our population is and lazy our population is when it comes to facts, how willing they are to just repeat something without spending ten seconds verifying it on their phone. I used to think, maybe there are really some things I don't understand, and won't understand until I live in Armenia. Absolutely false. Almost nothing anyone believes here is based on fact or personal experience. It's all something they heard from the neighbor of the cousin of their mother in law. The daily conversations you have with people, their perception of life in Georgia, of corruption in Armenia. And these are conversations with high level professionals, with engineers, architects, and project managers, who have every opportunity to know better. I can't imagine what the average uneducated person thinks.

Anyway, Artsvik Minasyan for president sounds pretty good right about now

I've been living in Armenia for 2 years and you are SO right!!

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Tourism Review
Sept 11 2016

ARMENIA: RURAL TOURISM TO RECEIVE INVESTMENTSxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx








A new development program focused on 60 rural regions in Armenia has been launched in the UN Office in Yerevan. Titled “The Development of Integrated Tourism” the aim of the project is to develop areas not often visited by tourists and decrease the poverty of locals.
86% of tourists visiting Armenia either stay in Yerevan, the capital city, or visit places that are closest to the capital like Garni, Gerghard or Etchmiadzin. As a result, the inhabitants of other Armenian regions do not get any benefit from the tourism inflow to the country.
In an effort to resolve the issue, the UN Nations Development Programme took the initiative to implement the project in Armenia. The aim is to develop rural tourism in the country. Its authors hope that within three years, towards the end of the project, poverty will be reduced significantly in sixty Armenian villages. Other than that, tourism should be also boosted.
“We believe that rural tourism is the market, whose development will promote the economic development throughout the country,” said the permanent representative of the UN Development Programme, Bradley Buzetto, during the presentation of the project in the UN Office in Yerevan.
According to him, the key to the project’s success is active cooperation of the government of Armenia with foreign partners involved in its implementation.
The cost of the project is 3 million dollars which will be paid by the Russian government. The deputy director of the Department of International Organizations of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dmitry Maksimichev said: “The programme is aimed at assisting the commensurate development of the rural regions and the creation of favorable environment for the development of villages. As a part of the project Russian experts will cooperate with Armenia.”
Incidentally, the Russian government has already been implementing a project worth five million dollars in villages of the Tavush region in Armenia. Its aim is rural development, agricultural production, and reduction of poverty. The project started in 2015 and is scheduled to be completed in 2019.
The project beneficiaries are 60,000 rural inhabitants. In the rural tourism development programme presented today in Yerevan sixty Armenian villages will be involved.
Experts will first of all examine tourist possibilities of the villages. Afterwards they will create business plans for small agribusinesses.
About one million dollars will be allocated for the improvement of rural infrastructure and water and gas supply systems. Without these, tourists are unlikely to stay in the villages.

http://www.tourism-review.com/rural-tourism-in-armenia-developing-news5119

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

We are building Silk Road to Europe via Iran, says president of pan-European Armenian organization

10:19 • 14.09.16



In an interview with Tert.am, the president of the Forum of Armenian Associations of Europe shared his vision of the new Silk Road project which he said is expected to connect Armenia to the European continent via Iran.

All the programs, elaborated in collaboration with former Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan’s cabinet are now going to be submitted to Karen Karapetyan, the newly appointed premier, Ashot Grigoryan said.

“Our holding, EU-Asia Business Financing Center, targets its efforts towards developing Armenia’s economy,” he said.

“Our programs cover not only Armenia but also its connections with Europe. Iran is collaborating with our company on the Slovakian government’s level, and the [collaboration] is developing very intensively. We have proposed Armenia as a transit route connecting Iran with Europe. That gives Armenia a maximum benefit it couldn’t have otherwise dreamed of. As for Iran, it pursues one interest: the Iran-Armenia-Poti railway, whose construction we are ready to fully fund,” he said, adding that the project is worth about 1 billion Euros.

“Aside from Poti, we have developed and are going to launch a new and very interesting logistic program to ship goods to Danube in sea-river cargo vessels. For that purpose, we are going to purchase a port. The interest for Slovakia is our plan to operate a huge network of storehouses to deliver the goods to [the EU] member states.

“The holding was founded to promote the EU-Asia cooperation with a special focus on the Iran-Armenia-Europe trend. What we are practically creating is a new Silk Road through Danube, instead of connecting Iran to Russia through Armenia (which Azerbaijan did by building a Silk Road). As for Iran, it has a direct route to India and China.”

http://www.tert.am/en/news/2016/09/14/grigoryan/2132423

[armnuke]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Armenia up 3 places to 79th on global competitiveness index

http://www.panorama.am/en/news/2016/09/28/Armenia/1650118

[armnuke]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Fingers crossed for this to go ahead. Nairit chemical plants might re-open.

Վարչապետին ներկայացվելու են «Նաիրիտի» վերականգման և Իրան-ՀՀ երկաթուղու կառուցման ներդրումային ծրագրերը

http://panarmenian.net/arm/news/221963

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Fingers crossed for this to go ahead. Nairit chemical plants might re-open.

Վարչապետին ներկայացվելու են «Նաիրիտի» վերականգման և Իրան-ՀՀ երկաթուղու կառուցման ներդրումային ծրագրերը

http://panarmenian.net/arm/news/221963

That plant was a major polluter if I remember correctly.

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

A Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) plant may start operating in Armenia starting from fall 2017.
Chief Research Associate of the Central Engineering Research Institute of Russian Roscosmos State Corporation, Victor Krivopuskov, said the aforementioned to Armenian News – NEWS.am.
GLONASS’ arrival in Armenia will significantly expand the use of space technology in transportation, medicine and catastrophe prevention, he noted. xx
“The plant will most probably start operating this time next year. It will be included in the system of GLONASS plants, and will work tirelessly for at least 30 years,” Krivopuskov said.x

http://news.am/eng/news/349359.html

[londontsi]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Տնտեսության նախաճգնաժամային վիճակը՝ մեկ գործարանի օրինակով. «Թարմ ուղեղով»՝ Ռաֆֆի Մխջյանի հետ

.

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

Here is a good example of how relations with Iran and membership in the EEU benefits Armenia despite the hordes of naysayers.

Matthias Kiesler
Photo: Mediamax

In the economic field we indeed see more and more potential. There is a rising interest of German entrepreneurs to come here not just for trade. Germany is already the biggest trading partner for Armenia within the European Union, and that’s good, but we think there is also more potential for German companies to produce here for several reasons. One of them is that from here you can enter the Russian market much easier because Armenia is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union. Armenia and Iran have very good relations, so there is a reason to produce here and maybe to export to Iran.

Armenia in principle is a small, isolated country, and this is a disadvantage. But now that you have good relations with Iran and you are a part of the Eurasian Economic Union, this could be an advantage. We try to develop it, and only last week I met a CEO of a German company, and he’s seriously thinking to invest here and produce here. We will follow up with that.

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenia's Economic Pulse

October 3, 2016 - 18:05 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - The fight against monopolies is high on the agenda of the new government, the newly-appointed Minister of Economic Development and Investment said Monday, October 3.
“This issue is topical as ever,” Suren Karayan said.
“But I will elaborate on the matter in a month when the new government is scheduled to present fresh approaches and solutions.”
Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan had earlier declared that the economy has no chance of rehabilitation without cutting the share of shadow economy.