«Zhoghovurd». Expenses Increased: What Work Has Been Done Through the State Budget

«The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia has presented a summary report on the execution of the state budget for the first half of 2020. It should be noted that the report indicates that the whole world continues to bear the negative consequences of the rapid spread of the pandemic. In this context, it is significant that a considerable downturn is anticipated for the economies of Armenia's partner countries, which will inevitably have a substantial negative impact on the Armenian economy.

So, what work has been done through the state budget? In the first half of 2020, the implementation of 179 programs was planned under the responsibility of 46 state bodies using the resources of the Armenian state budget. In fact, funds were used within the framework of 168 proposed programs. Out of the 877 activities planned within these programs, 698, or 79.6%, have been fully or partially carried out.

In the first half of 2020, the expenditures of the Armenian state budget amounted to 765.6 billion dram, which is 82.6% of the planned figure. The deviation constituted 161.2 billion dram, which has mainly been recorded in programs implemented under the responsibility of the Ministries of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, Defense, Labor and Social Affairs, Economy, Education, Science, Culture and Sport, and Health.

Thus, the Government of the Republic of Armenia has executed 8 programs with a budget of around 7.7 billion dram, or 56.3% of the planned figure, instead of the anticipated 11 programs. During the accountable period to the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, approximately 2 billion dram was provided to ensure the implementation of the National Assembly's competencies, which accounted for 85.8% of the semiannual program. Compared to the first half of 2019, the expenses of the National Assembly decreased by 5.4%, or 112.1 million dram.

Moreover, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia procured 60,000 medical kits for coronavirus diagnosis, 230,000 protective medical supplies, and 102 health devices for the prevention, control, and treatment of COVID-19. The funds allocated for ensuring the sanitary-epidemiological safety of the population and public health services, amounting to 842.3 million dram, have been fully utilized. Compared to the same period last year, expenses for this program increased by 9.9 times, or 8.3 billion dram, attributed mainly to the funding of measures related to the coronavirus infection (COVID-19),” the newspaper writes.