YEREVAN. - Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan on Thursday received the delegation led by the Managing Director for Eastern Europe and the Caucasus at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Francis Malige.
Karapetyan lauded the cooperation with the EBRD, whose efficiency is tangibly apparent through the relevant figures. Armenia-EBRD partnership package includes 153 programs, of which 56 are currently implemented, the number of investments made by the EBRD exceeding 1 billion.
The Prime Minister also underscored the importance of EBRD’s support to the implementation of programs both in the public (Management of Solid Waste, Improvement of Water Supply, Modernization of Border Crossing-Points, etc.) and private sector, especially welcoming the circumstance that 83 percent of the current overall portfolio of Armenia (305 mln euro) is aimed at the direct funding of the private sector.
In terms of the financial market development, Karapetyan also attached importance to the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Armenian Finance Ministry and Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) in March.
Francis Malige, for his part, thanked for the high assessment, stressing that the EBRD attaches importance to expanding the cooperation with Armenia and continuously increasing the investment volume. He also welcomed the initiative to establish Strategic Initiatives Center, as well as the efforts aimed at improving the business climate and competitive field, noting that the EBRD is ready to actively work on the joint projects with that center, as well as be useful to the Government in forming a favorable competitive field.
Referring to the priorities of the bilateral cooperation, Francis Malige confirmed the readiness to develop the cooperation in three directions—raising competitiveness of private sector, developing local capital market and forming self-sufficient public services—established by the new 2015 strategy for Armenia, based on the priorities identified by the Armenian Government.
The interlocutors also discussed the bilateral cooperation and its development prospects. The sides touched on the improvement of the legal framework concerning the energy and public-private sector cooperation, improvement of business environment, formation of investment funds and issues related to the possible cooperation in a number of other directions. Apart from this, Francis Malege welcomed the introduction of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) by the executive and the enshrinement of the application of EITI’s candidacy in the 2017 Armenian Government program.
Prime Minister Karapetyan noted that the Armenian Government is open and ready for cooperation in all possible areas. He instructed the heads of agencies concerned to thoroughly discuss the joint programs and further actions with the EBRD representatives.
