Pashinyan Names Cause of Poverty in Armenia
03.12.2025,
12:29
Armenia has a poverty problem. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this during the final discussion of the 2026 budget draft in parliament.
YEREVAN, December 3. /ARKA/. Armenia has a poverty problem. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this during the final discussion of the 2026 budget draft in parliament.
"We assess the recently published poverty indicators as good. However, methodological issues need to be clarified. Extreme poverty is 0.6%, meaning we are close to eradicating it. This was our campaign promise made in 2021," Pashinyan said.
According to him, the poverty rate could not have remained unchanged given the economic indicators.
"Yes, Armenia has a poverty problem. The cause of poverty in Armenia is no longer the lack of jobs. This problem has long been resolved. The cause of poverty in Armenia is the lack or shortage of skills needed to avoid it," Pashinyan said.
As an example, he cited the fact that tens of thousands of people from other countries come to Armenia to work and support their families back home.
"The way to overcome poverty is through work. But there are also working poor because they lack sufficient professional skills. If work doesn't ensure a person's well-being, they need to return to education and improve their skills. If that doesn't help, they need to get additional education," Pashinyan said.
According to the Statistical Committee of Armenia, the poverty rate in Armenia, calculated based on the median line, was 21.7% by the end of 2024. This represents a decrease of 2 percentage points compared to the previous year (23.7%). Meanwhile, the extreme poverty rate last year was 0.6%, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points compared to the 2023 estimate (1.1%).
"We assess the recently published poverty indicators as good. However, methodological issues need to be clarified. Extreme poverty is 0.6%, meaning we are close to eradicating it. This was our campaign promise made in 2021," Pashinyan said.
According to him, the poverty rate could not have remained unchanged given the economic indicators.
"Yes, Armenia has a poverty problem. The cause of poverty in Armenia is no longer the lack of jobs. This problem has long been resolved. The cause of poverty in Armenia is the lack or shortage of skills needed to avoid it," Pashinyan said.
As an example, he cited the fact that tens of thousands of people from other countries come to Armenia to work and support their families back home.
"The way to overcome poverty is through work. But there are also working poor because they lack sufficient professional skills. If work doesn't ensure a person's well-being, they need to return to education and improve their skills. If that doesn't help, they need to get additional education," Pashinyan said.
According to the Statistical Committee of Armenia, the poverty rate in Armenia, calculated based on the median line, was 21.7% by the end of 2024. This represents a decrease of 2 percentage points compared to the previous year (23.7%). Meanwhile, the extreme poverty rate last year was 0.6%, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points compared to the 2023 estimate (1.1%).
