Government MP on Funding Allocated to Artsakh

Gevorg Papoyan, a member of the ruling "Civil Contract" faction of the National Assembly, announced on his page that he has emphasized the crucial issue of the targeted and efficient use of funds allocated by the Republic of Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to Papoyan, citizens of Armenia (taxpayers) should be confident that the allocated funds fully serve the intended purpose, which is to address the needs of Nagorno-Karabakh and all its residents.

"Regarding the purposefulness and efficiency of the financial resources allocated to Nagorno-Karabakh by the Republic of Armenia, today in the permanent commission on financial-credit and budgetary issues of the National Assembly, we discussed the programs of the state budget for 2024. I have particularly emphasized the importance of the targeted and efficient use of funds allocated by the RA to Nagorno-Karabakh. Specifically, citizens of Armenia (taxpayers) should be assured that the allocated funds entirely serve their purpose, which is to address the needs of Nagorno-Karabakh and all its inhabitants.

Unfortunately, especially against the backdrop of the recent corruption revelations in Nagorno-Karabakh, our citizens have raised concerns regarding the effective and purposeful use of the allocated funds. In this regard, I have asked the Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia to develop appropriate procedures for monitoring these expenditures. In these procedures, it should be clearly indicated what the funds are spent on and where.

I believe that the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia should pay very serious attention to the effectiveness and purposefulness of these expenditures. In the near future, we may need to request certain documentation regarding this matter.

Let me note that for 2022, it was planned to allocate 144 billion drams, but in reality, 176 billion drams were provided. Part of the increase was due to the request from partners in Nagorno-Karabakh to allocate 12 billion drams intended for 2023 in December 2022, and their request was fulfilled. For this reason, the intergovernmental loan planned for 2023 became 132 billion drams. However, at the request of the Government of Nagorno-Karabakh and by the decision of the Government of Armenia, an additional 20.4 billion drams have already been allocated in the first half of this year," Papoyan wrote.