Armenian authorities need to create a cluster platform to increase the competitiveness of the economy – financier

YEREVAN, April 10. /ARKA/. International experience and the best examples of successful industrial policies highlight the importance of creating clusters and expanding cooperation, said former Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia, Vardan Aramyan, speaking on the ARKA Business program on the ARKA news agency YouTube channel about untapped opportunities for Armenia's economy.

“Business entities are much more familiar with the specific problems and barriers they face when entering the market. This is why the dialogue needs to be expanded,” he said.

In this context, Aramyan recalled that Armenia previously followed an industrial policy in which the authorities maintained active dialogue with representatives of various economic sectors.

“I assume that such cooperation is currently in a rather passive state, as I haven’t seen any reports of groups or clusters of businesspeople holding regular meetings with government officials on a permanent dialogue platform—meetings that would ideally lead to government action aimed at boosting the competitiveness of these industrial sectors.”

Speaking at the macroeconomic level, he noted that as early as 2022, the government should have taken a stricter taxation approach—not targeting the export sector, but rather supporting it by introducing tools to help reduce costs.

“At the same time, the government and the Central Bank should have implemented sterilization measures to prevent the exchange rate from falling to 380–390 drams,” he added.