France to Provide Armenia with a €75 Million Loan for 20 Years

France will provide Armenia with a €75 million loan for a period of 20 years. This was announced today during the government’s regular meeting by the Minister of Finance of Armenia, Vahe Hovhannisyan.

He noted that a loan agreement will be signed between Armenia and the French Development Agency on June 26, 2024.

Hovhannisyan stated that the program consists of three main components: "Improving the public finance management system, strengthening the framework for the issuance and management of government securities and the monetary framework, developing new tools for financing entrepreneurial activities, and ensuring more transparent governance."

He informed that this is the second phase of the program, with the first phase having been completed in 2022.

The Minister also mentioned that the program is being implemented in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank: "Therefore, the framework of reforms is also identical, and the loan agreement with the Asian Development Bank is expected to be signed soon, following its approval by the ADB Board."

The minister emphasized that the funds will be directed to finance the deficit defined by the law on the state budget for 2024: "Thus, the timely receipt of loan funds is of great importance for financing the expenditures defined by the categories of the state budget."