Clarification from the Ministry of Economy of Armenia

The Ministry of Economy, in response to media reports suggesting that the High-Quality Specialist Attraction Program conducted by the Ministry has spent 3.8 billion AMD and subsequently recognized the program as ineffective, has provided the following clarification:

“First of all, the aforementioned program has been operational since 2022, with the ‘National Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’ State Non-Commercial Organization initially responsible for its implementation. After Gevorg Papoyan was appointed as the Minister of Economy, the program was transferred to the ministry, and the minister immediately instructed to conduct a monitoring assessment of the program’s effectiveness.

The study revealed that the impact on economic development has been lower than originally expected, which served as the basis for the decision to halt the further operation of the current program. The minister has instructed that the state funds initially allocated for this program be redirected to other priority areas with higher demand among citizens and greater effectiveness.

As for the funds already disbursed under the program, recalculations are being carried out again at the minister’s directive.

We reaffirm that for Minister Gevorg Papoyan, the effective use of state funds is a priority and not subject to discussion.”