“We have been talking about oligopolies for ten years, and it is not a new phenomenon,” RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan told reporters on December 25. He said that oligopolies are an obstacle to competition and price flexibility.

The Premier stressed that oligopolies are not at all monopolies. For an end to be put to this phenomenon the RA Commission for Protection of Economic Competition must enhance its efficiency. In this context the Premier also pointed out the need for tax reforms, prohibition on business activities for politicians, and necessary public sentiments. The Premier cited an example of effective control over oligopolies: from now on 500 largest Armenian enterprises will submit reports based on external audit results.

Tigran Sargsyan also stressed that Armenian statesmen run businesses, but Armenia lacks the necessary legal underpinnings to control this phenomenon. “Now we must show political will and create mechanisms for not only political appraisals, but also actual steps to be made,” the Armenian Premier said. He pointed out the necessity for mechanisms to prevent government officials from managing their own businesses. Sargsyan said it is international practice, which has to be applied in Armenia. “The most important mechanism is the one to ensure transparent activities,” the Premier said. He stressed that officials’ statements of property must be available to everyone.

It is noteworthy, however, that relevant mechanisms are in effect in Armenia even now, but no official has yet been held responsible for doing business.

T.P.