New Minister's Husband's LLC Signs 240 Contracts with State Entities, 43% with the Ministry of Health

The newspaper "Zhoghovurd" reports. "Thus, Deputy Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan was appointed as Minister, replacing Arsen Torosyan, who took over the position of head of the Government Staff. But who is Anahit Avanesyan? It has been published repeatedly that she is the wife of Arsen Torosyan's close friend, she is a lawyer by profession, a specialist in civil rights. Not only does she lack medical education, but she has also not undergone any training as a healthcare organizer.

Avanesyan's husband, Stepan Avanesyan, and Arsen Torosyan are not only friends but also have business interests. The company "Armpharmatsia" owned by Anahit Avanesyan's husband has signed 240 contracts with 44 state entities in recent years, amounting to approximately 606.7 million drams, more than half of which—137 contracts—were signed during the time Avanesyan served as the Deputy Minister. The contracts with various state entities, including the Ministry of Health and its subordinate organizations, amount to 209.5 million AMD. About 43% of the contracts (262 million drams) were signed with the Ministry of Health.

Before her appointment as minister, Avanesyan was the head of the same "Armpharmatsia". This means that today’s minister has evidently utilized her deputy minister status and her husband’s friend's opportunities to develop family businesses. ArmLur.am attempted to clarify with the head of the Anti-Corruption Committee, Haykuhi Harutyunyan, whether the disclosures about the minister's husband’s assets could become the subject of study; however, the committee's president stated that the minister has just been appointed and is not yet an official person, and has not yet submitted her declaration as a minister.

However, it should be noted that Anahit Avanesyan submitted a declaration while serving as a deputy minister, which also contains interesting facts. According to her declaration published in the Anti-Corruption Committee, Anahit Avanesyan owns an apartment in the Arabkir administrative district, a garden house in the village of Ghazaravan in Aragatsotn Province, and a residential area in the Arabkir administrative district. As income, Anahit Avanesyan declared 12 million drams as salary for the year, and another 11 million drams as dividends from "Abovyan 39" LLC.

According to the declaration, she holds 50% of the shares in that LLC. This company is engaged in real estate management. Now about "Armpharmatsia" LLC. It is a major importer of psychoactive drugs. The company periodically wins—and continues to win—procurement competitions, supplying drugs and medical supplies to several state entities. The list of buyers includes various medical centers, the Ministry of Justice, the Police, and the latest contract was signed with the National Security Service, providing drugs worth 318 thousand drams. It is interesting to observe how corruption, conflict of interest, and the use of state levers for personal businesses will manifest themselves."