‘Armenian government implements open-door policy towards foreign investments’ – PM Pashinyan
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YEREVAN, OCTOBER 25, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government implements an open-door policy towards foreign investments, providing for full property ownership, PM Nikol Pashinyan told Gulf News in an interview.
“Armenia provides an excellent opportunity for investors in areas such as information technology, tourism, agriculture, manufacturing, energy and many others”, he said. “Our government implements an open-door policy towards foreign investments, providing for full property ownership. Foreign investors can have free access to any sector and geographic location within the country with no restrictions on personnel recruitment, free and unlimited repatriation of profits, unlimited currency exchange on market rates, and guarantees against nationalization. The five-year grandfather clause protecting foreign investors against investment-related legislation changes is also a part of our foreign investment framework. With regard to international economic relations, Armenia has bilateral treaties on investment promotion and protection with 43 countries, including the United States. Armenia is a member of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. We have treaties on the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with 46 countries. This means that the investors are granted a number of guarantees – in particular, national treatment, protection from expropriation, free transfer of means and full protection and security”.
Pashinyan noted that the World Bank has ranked Armenia 41st out of 190 countries in its Doing Business report.
“In terms of ease of starting a business, Armenia is 8th in the world, and 14th for registering a property. According to the Index of Economic Freedom, Armenia is the 47th freest economy in the world. We are continuing to carry out deep and comprehensive reforms to improve our business environment. The government is working on legislative reforms to establish a most-favoured-nation regime to define the guarantees provided for foreign investors, as well as to introduce effective dispute settlement mechanisms. We are currently working on expanding opportunities and clearly defining the legal framework for public-private partnerships.
“Armenia is a small, landlocked country” is a description that you may find in many books and articles. Well, I agree, we are a small country. But, we are a nation with a wide and global network, which makes us great. Armenia is located in a place that bridges cultures and economies. Some may claim that Armenia has a small market, but I am here to challenge that view. Armenia is a part of the Eurasian Economic Union market that has over 180 million consumers. Armenian producers also benefit from GSP+ preferential treatment with the European Union, and GSP with the United States and some other countries. Armenia is also deepening cooperation with the European Union through a Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement. This ambitious agreement provides a framework for Armenia and the EU to work together for the benefit of the citizens of Armenia in the areas of strengthening democracy and human rights, creating more jobs and business opportunities, fairer rules, more safety and security, a cleaner environment, as well as better education and opportunities for research”, the Armenian Prime Minister said.
In response to a question regarding the reduction of the number of ministries, the PM said there were simple reasons for doing so. “One of the goals of our reform agenda is the optimization of public administration and the establishment of more efficient and less costly government institutions. Reduction of the number of ministries will help us meet this goal and enhance the efficiency of our government.”
He said that the reforms in Armenia are long-term and strategic, and therefore the economic revolution will have a long-lasting effect on the country’s economic development and people’s lives.
“Meanwhile, let me share some already recorded results with you. In 2018, we registered a 5.2% economic growth rate and maintained a moderate inflation rate. These are very positive results for a year that saw a revolution. We have also had a 9% increase in exports. The positive dynamics are continuing this year with 6.5% growth recorded in the first half of the year. In August 2019, Moody’s upgraded Armenia’s credit rating to “Ba3”. These results are promising; however, there is much more that needs to be done.”