YEREVAN, APRIL 10, ARMENPRESS. The World Congress on Information Technologies 2019 will be held in Armenia. During those days Yerevan will become the world’s IT capital, reports Armenpress. On the sidelines of the Congress Armenia will host more than 2000 businessmen, public officials, investors and renowned scientists. This Congress would be impossible to hold in Armenia without the state assistance and attention. In 2008 the Government adopted new, IT development 10-year strategy, setting main priority the development of the field, the strengthening of Armenia’s competitive potential and formation of leading information society. Staring from 2008 funds from the state budget were provided to respective state bodies coordinating the IT field.

The growth rates of the field were so fast that soon the ArmTec international forum was held. In line with development the DigiTec Expo is being organized in Armenia.

Over the past ten years a number of international agreements both with states (Egypt, India and etc.) and international leading companies (Microsoft, Alcatel, HP, INTEL, IBM, Simens, Oracl, Cisco) were signed. The Presidential Award was defined. Since 2010 this award is being bestowed to people whose investments in IT field led to information developments and positively affected the humanity. This award brought Armenia specialists such as Steve Wozniak, Mario Mazzola, Eugene Kaspersky. They not only visited Armenia, but also presented investment programs later in the future.

The President constantly awards distinguished students and school-children in the IT field. During 2016-2017 Armenia introduced the legislative package on state assistance to the IT field. Thanks to this law the tax privileges became available for new economic entities.

In 2014 Armat engineering laboratory establishment program launched by the initiative of the Union of Information Technology Enterprises and assistance of the government, local and international companies. There are already 220 laboratories in Armenia and Artsakh.

Thanks to the rapid growth of the field, the IT sector became among the fields in the labor market where the quantitative and qualitative demand of the labor force surpassed the supply by several times. Thanks to the development of the field Sam and Sylva Simonian founded the TUMO Center for Creative Technologies in 2011 which today has branches in Gyumri, Dilijan and Stepanakert.

It is accepted to say that Armenia is an exporting country in the IT field. More than 50% of products and services is being exported. Most of the exports, 60%, is directed to the USA, Canada, 18% to Europe, 16.6% to Russia-CIS.

The field of telecommunication also took the development path where there are 33 companies. In the recent years the number of jobs also increases annually by at least 10%, surpassing 15.000 in 2017. The average salary is over 1000 USD. The productivity also increased, reaching nearly 50.000 USD per employee in 2018 compared to 29.300 USD of 2008.

The ongoing active steps in the field already left their traces on the overall economy. Since 2008 20% growth in the average annual turnover was recorded in the field. In 2017 it reached 30%, surpassing 760.000.000 USD. In 2008 this number was just 111.300.000 USD.

The number of companies increases annually by 10%. The number of actively operating companies surpassed 600 in 2017, but their total number including the newly-established companies surpasses 1000. In 2017 only 110 new companies were registered.

Such IT growth also solves a serious demographic issue. The field not only provides new jobs to solve the daily issues, but also forms an intellectual middle class which can have its great contribution to the country’s development. The average salary of employees working in the field is 2000-2700 USD.

Among the Armenian IT achievements in international platforms was the deployment of Joomeg in Armenia which enables the world’s more than 300.000 publishers to create digital, interactive magazines, catalogs, e-books and etc. Picsart app today has more than 100.000.000 active users across the world. Soft Construct opened offices in 14 countries of the world, participates in more than 120 exhibitions annually.

Among the steps outlined for 2018 are to reach the computer equipment of educational institutions, state and local self-governance structures 100%, increase access to internet 90%, make the share of online services in services provided by state bodies 80%, the revenues of the IT field  - 1 billion, exports – 700.000.000 USD, involved venture capital – more than 700 million USD.

Future belongs to technological progress, and Armenia, judging from the aforementioned facts, is moving forward in the IT field.

English –translator/editor: Aneta Harutyunyan