Author: Babajanian Karo

B.SAHAKYAN SIGNED A DECREE ON DETERMINING PERSONAL SCHOLARSHIPS

Aysor.am
Thursday,September 29

On 29 September President Bako Sahakyan signed a decree on determining
personal scholarships in the specialized secondary educational
institutions of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic.

According to the decree for encouraging students who have shown
excellent progress in education and public activity in the specialized
secondary educational institutions of the Artsakh Republic personal
scholarships in the sum of 20 (twenty) thousand Drams will be
introduced from the 2011-2012 academic year.

The procedure of providing such scholarships has been elaborated in
a corresponding annex.

The NKR Cabinet of Ministers has been assigned to securing the
allocation of the corresponding financial means.

PENSIONS TO BE INCREASED BY 3 THOUSAND DRAMS IN ARMENIA BY THE PROJECT OF THE STATE BUDGET FOR 2012 – FINANCE MINISTRY

ARKA
Sep 29, 2011

YEREVAN, September 29. /ARKA/. The project of state budget of Armenia
for 2012 envisages increase of pensions by 3 thousand drams – to
31.3 thousand compared to the current 28.4 thousand drams, said first
Deputy Minister of Finance Pavel Safaryan in the government meeting
on Thursday.

“The number of social benefits will also increase by 2.7 thousand
drams which will make 29.5 thousand drams. Expenses of social sphere
will be increased, particularly on the account of tax entries to the
budget”, said Safaryan.

Weighted average of tax entries to GDP will be about 17. 4%. “Over 96%
of income of state budget (910 billion drams) are tax collections. It
is rather high indicator meaning that the main part of the expenses
is implemented on the account of internal resources”, he said.

Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sargsyan said that additional
funding will also allow to increase the size of pensions in the
country which will be provided by European Union, World Bank and
International Monetary Fund in case of successful implementation of
government programs.

“In 2012 we will reform the salaries for the first time and provide
civil servants social welfare packages which will allow them to
pay percents of mortgage loans, cover healthcare expenses through
insurance policies and pay for education of children in schools and
universities”, said Sargsyan.

>>From introduction of this project, first of all civil servants with
low salaries will benefit.

“But we should not forget that all these measures require additional
expenses. This necessity insists us to increase the ratio of taxes
to GDP”, he said.

Armenian ministry of finance sent yesterday a draft budget for 2012
to the Cabinet’s consideration. It calls for 910 billion drams in
revenues and 1.042.5 trillion drams in spending. The projected deficit
is 132.5 billion drams.

According to the statement, the amount of revenue is projected to
increase by 6.8% from this year’s budget (852.4 billion drams). The
spending is expected to grow by 41.5 billion drams. Some 86.1% of the
spending (897.8 billion drams) is projected as current expenditure;
13.9% or 144.7 billion drams are projected as net non-financial
expenditure. Some 46.2% are projected as social spending (education,
health, social security), 19.8% as defence, public order and national
security spending, 13.2% are planned for economic boost, 4.5% are
projected to pay off Armenia’s state debt. Besides, 3.1 % of the
blueprint budget is projected as official grants to communities and 2%
as government reserve fund).

In the result of the checks by Social Welfare Ministry, the database
of pensioners in Armenia reduced by 6 thousand people making about
514 thousand pensioners. Average size of pension in Armenia is about
28 thousand drams. ($1 – 370.38 drams).

ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER SAYS GOVERNMENT EXPECTS TO INCREASE REVENUES NEXT YEAR BY ABOUT 100 BILLION DRAMS

ARKA
Sep 29, 2011

YEREVAN, September 29. / ARKA /. Speaking at a Cabinet session today
Armenian prime minister Tigran Sarkisian said the government expects
its revenues to increase next year by about 100 billion drams from
this year. The 2011 budget calls for 850 billion drams in revenues,
of which 650 billion drams are to be collected as taxes.

“The changes we are planning to make to the tax law will be
implemented in two ways ~V increasing the tax base and improving
tax administration. We assess our opportunities to improve tax
administration at 10-15 billion drams, while taxes are likely to grow
by around 100 billion drams,” he said.

According to Sarkisian, all the ministers were instructed to learn
how much GDP is produced in their respective sectors, what is the
value of new products and how much money goes to the budget.

He, however, said that even if the changes are not implemented, the
size of the country’s budget will increase by 40-50 billion drams on
the wave of economic growth, forecast at 4.2%.

The prime minister said the draft budget for 2012 was discussed with
Armenia~Rs main donors – the IMF and the WB, which along with the EU
are expected to provide extra financial support in 2012.

He said every year the IMF board of directors tells Armenia if it
does not increase the rate of redistribution of financial resources
through the budget, donors will give up additional financing, because
Armenia has undiscovered resources.

~QTo put it simply , why should they have to finance the deficit of
our budget, if Armenia has the resources that the authorities are
obliged to use,” Sarkisian said.

He added that the increase in the ratio of tax to GDP by 0.6% per
year is a serious challenge for Armenia, since the government did
not assume previously such a burden.

“That is why we have developed jointly with the IMF a tax package,
which seeks to identify those areas that had not been previously
taxed, so that we can reallocate more funds through the state budget”,
he said.

The premier added that the tax package was also discussed with the
president of Armenia, because the document has also a political
component.

Armenian ministry of finance sent yesterday a draft budget for 2012
to the Cabinet~Rs consideration. It calls for 910 billion drams in
revenues and 1.042.5 trillion drams in spending. The projected deficit
is 132.5 billion drams, the finance ministry said in a statement
sent to ARKA. According to the statement, the amount of revenue is
projected to increase by 6.8% from this year~Rs budget (852.4 billion
drams). The spending is expected to grow by 41.5 billion drams. Some
86.1% of the spending (897.8 billion drams) is projected as current
expenditure. ($1 – 370.38 AMD).

MONUMENT TO THE FALLEN ARMENIAN RAILWAY MEN OPENED IN ONE OF THE DISTRICTS OF YEREVAN

ARKA
Sep 29, 2011

YEREVAN, September 29. /ARKA/. Official opening ceremony of the
monument to the Armenian railway men fallen in the First and Second
World Wars, as well as in the liberation war in Karabakh opened in
administrative district Erebuni in Yerevan.

The company “South-Caucasian Railway” (SCR) gives special importance to
the events which allow to maintain close relations between different
generations, commemorate the fallen in defense of the homeland,
as well as assist in the development of corporate culture and values.

“The idea of the monument occurred in regard with 60th anniversary of
the victory in the Great Patriotic War. Prior to that, near Yerevan
railway station a stele was erected, but then it was decided that
a monument will be installed here, in Erebuni district in Yerevan”,
said Chief Engineer of SCR Sergey Harutyunyan.

The height of the monument is about five meters. It is built by the
donations of railway men and sponsors.

Harutyunyan also said that SCR plans to improve the territory of the
park of liberators by their own funds where the monument is installed.

In the opening ceremony representatives of SCR management, parliament
members, employees of Yerevan Municipality and Erebuni district
administration, as well as veteran-railway men and inhabitants of
the district were present.

CJSC “South-Caucasian Railway” is a 100% subsidiary of OJSC “Russian
Railways” implementing concession management of CJSC “Armenian
Railways” according to the Concession Agreement signed on February 13,
2008. Term of the concession is 30 years with the right of extension
for another 10 years.

WHO WILL ARF-D NOMINATE?

Lragir.am News

17:25:04 – 29/09/2011

Today the leader of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun parliamentary group Vahan
Hovhannisyan said he cannot say who will be nominated for president
by their party. He added that political decisions in the ARF-D are
made collegially during sessions.

The ex-foreign minister Vardan Oskanyan did not rule out Robert
Kocharyan’s return to politics. In answer to the question of the
reporters whether Kocharyan may re-appear on the ticket of the ARF-D,
Vahan Hovhannisyan said the ARF-D did not have a related discussion,
no related proposals were made by Kocharyan or Oskanyan. “If they
propose, if we discuss, I don’t know what will happen. Anyone can
turn to the ARF D to run in the elections or cooperate.”

He said the home political events in Russia will hardly influence
the home political life of Armenia. Though some nuances may change,
he said.

“The Putin-Medvedev pair is referred to as a tandem in the Russian
political terminology, and if they paddle in opposite directions,
Russia will fall down,” Mr. Hovhannisyan says. By the way, Vahan
Hovhannisyan was the presidential candidate of the ARF-D in 2008.

VARDAN BOSTANJYAN: ARMENIA’S INTERNAL POLITICAL LIFE IS STABLE

ARMENPRESS
13:31, 29 September, 2011

The internal political life of Armenia is stable, member of NA
Prosperous Armenia Party’s faction Vardan Bostanjyan told today a
press conference. “The tension that is exists is natural, as the
elections are approaching,” he said, adding that political forces
do their best to increase that tension. The member of the Prosperous
Armenia Party noted that he respects the opposition, but he does not
see a competitor among them.

Vardan Bostanjyan positively assessed the social-economic situation
in Armenia. “All the possible reserves and opportunities, including
the foreign financial means, are used for giving solution to the
current issues,” he said. As a proof he referred to the celebration
and military parade dedicated to RA Independence Holiday, which
showed the strength of the country. According to him, Armenia is at
an invulnerable level.

TIGRAN SARGSYAN: TIMELY IMPLEMENTATION OF REFORMS PROGRAM TO FACILITATE SOLUTION OF ISSUES OF 2012

ARMENPRESS
14:54, 29 September, 2011

We will have a strained work in 2012, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan said during today’s governmental session, referring to the
RA bill on State Budget 2012. He informed that the bill has been
discussed by the main donors – International Monetary Fund (IMF)
and World Bank (WB).

Next year Armenia expects an additional support from those structures,
and a support from the EU for reducing the performance indicator
risks of the budget 2012.

According to Tigran Sargsyan, the principle of these international
organizations is one – states must undertake measures to reveal
their own resources and implement reforms, and the states fulfilling
this, will get additional funding. “Our negotiations with IMF are
conditioned by this principle – more reforms – more funding, and the
same principle works at EU. It means that timely implementation of
reforms program will facilitate solution of issues of 2012,” the head
of the RA government said.

SERZH SARGSYAN AND FRANCOIS FILLON DISCUSS OPPORTUNITIES OF EXPANSION OF COOPERATION

ARMENPRESS
10:00, 29 September, 2011

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met September 28 in Paris with
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon.

Presidential press service told Armenpress that the interlocutors
welcomed the growth of French investments in Armenia’s economy. An
agreement was reached to continue to support and encourage the
participation of French companies in programs implemented in different
spheres of Armenian economy.

President Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister Francois Fillon discussed
issues concerning Armenia-EU cooperation. Importance was attached
to the assistance of France in Armenia’s efforts directed toward EU
integration, particularly, within the framework of the EU Eastern
Partnership. The interlocutors noted that those issues will be
discussed more thoroughly at the Eastern Partnership summit to be
held in Warsaw.

Besides issues on strengthening and development of high-level
political, economic ties, the Armenian President and French Prime
Minister discussed the opportunities of expansion of cooperation in
the spheres of culture and education. Prime Minister Francois Fillon
expressed a hope that the upcoming state visit of Nicolas Sarkozy
to Armenia will be marked by new cooperation programs in different
spheres.

J.EVANS: TURKEY SHOULD REALIZE THAT IT DID A BAD THING

Aysor.am
Thursday,September 29

It is clear that the US has good relations with Turkey and has
also allied relations with that country, the former United States
ambassador to the Republic of Armenia John Marshall Evans said today
at the discussion organized by the “Civilitas” foundation.

“It is not important whether Uruguay, US or other country recognize
the Armenian Genocide, but it is important for Turkey to recognize it,”
he said.

He stated that most of the Turkish do not know their history, at the
same time the ambassador mentioned that since 1998 no one has been
imprisoned for using the word Genocide, which is a change by itself.

Summing up his speech the former diplomat mentioned that it is
important that Turkey realized that it didn’t do a good thing.

ALEXANDRO SAFINA’S NEWS CONFERENCE IN YEREVAN MARRED BY INCIDENT

Tert.am
22:58 28.09.11

The meeting of the famous Italian tenor Alexandro Safina with Armenian
reporters, prior to his concert in Yerevan, was marred by an incident,
lasting only about eight minutes.

Safina said at the news conference that he has always been and
continues to be an opera singer. He also said that like other opera
singers he has recently been singing also in “light genres,” adding
that by that he does not intend to increase his incomes.

“It just happened. There was no special decision,” said the prominent
opera singer.

Asked whether he feels bad that he will be giving a concert instead
of Cesaria Evora, who cancelled hers over health problems, Sona
Hovhannisyan, the general manager of the Yerevan Perspective festival,
did not translate the question.

Hovhannisyan responded instead of the singer, saying: “He is not
singing instead of Cesaria. This is Safina’s concert.”

Asked what he knows about Armenia, Safina said not much, adding that
he knows well the French-Armenian singer Charles Aznavur.

When asked about his knowledge of the Armenian Genocide, the singer
responded with a question: “Have I committed a sin by coming to
Armenia.”

Further, the reporters asked what he knows about the Armenia
Philharmonic Orchestra, after which the singer left the room, with
the press conference lasting only about eight minutes.