Armenia needs new economic policy- MP says
YEREVAN, March 23. /ARKA/. An MP from the opposition Prosperous Armenia party Mikael Melkumyan said today the government needs to form a new economic policy.
Speaking in parliament, Melkumyan cited the government budgets for 2018-202 stating
with regret that Armenia "has slipped into a consumer economy." According to him, current expenditures in these budgets increased by 260-270 billion drams, while capital expenditures only by 60-70 billion drams.
"Chronic underperformance of capital expenditures of the budget means that jobs are not created. This means the government's economic policy is incorrect, because the political majority delegated their competences and responsibilities to 2-3 people in the government, who intentionally or unintentionally have led the political majority to the edge of the abyss," he said.
According to Melkumyan, it is necessary to free citizens from existing loans and form a new economic policy. Earlier, the head of the Prosperous Armenia, Gagik Tsarukyan, called on the government to freeze interest on citizens' loans , to forgive or amnesty some interest on loans and to raise pensions.
The Central Bank of Armenia has revised its forecast for economic growth for 2021 downward from the previous 2% to 1.4%.
The 2021 budget calls for 1 trillion 569.06 billion drams in revenue and 1 trillion 843.1 billion drams in spending. The projected deficit is 274 billion drams (4.1% of GDP). The growth is projected at 4.8%, the inflation is set at 4% (± 1.5%). ($1 - 528.12 drams). --0--