The issue on a change in regulations for public procurement was raised during today’s government session. Presenting the bill on regulations, Minister of Finance Atom Janjughazyan stated that the bill envisages making the procurement system more flexible, defines peculiarities for procurement in the defense sector, takes into consideration the inclusion of small and medium businesses, etc.

According to Janjughazyan, people sometimes interpret this bill in such a way that the government has to purchase products for the lowest price, even though those products may be of low quality. In reality, according to the minister, there is no such restriction.

In his turn, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the finance minister’s observation is very important. “It turns out that a low-quality product was obtained through public procurement, and the question is why it was obtained. I get the impression that if someone offers the product for free, he or she will win. So, a low price doesn’t imply low-quality products that are useless. A low price means a price for a product that is as cheap as possible, but is a quality product,” Pashinyan said.