ArmInfo. In Armenia, it is planned to remove obstacles that are not conducive to public-private partnership.
At a meeting on January 14, the government of the country amended the earlier decisions regarding the participation of the Investment Fund in the programs of private companies. According to the Minister of Economy of the Republic of Armenia Vahan Keropyan, the proposed solutions are aimed at increasing flexibility in the activities of the Fund and increasing the number of beneficiaries of the program. For these purposes, a number of requirements for the Investment Fund are canceled.
The fund is currently has the right to invest in commercial organizations if the volume of his investments is comparable to the volume of investments of a private investor. In addition, as a result of investments from the private investor, the total capital of the company should increase by the amount of these investments. Another limitation applies to the Fund's investments in an already launched investment program, which is considered completed if the value of the organization's net assets at the time of investment by the fund exceeds the total value of the fund's investments.
Also, currently there are restrictions on attracting credit resources by a private investor in the amount of investments from the Investment Fund. Meanwhile, according to Keropyan, all these conditions significantly limit the state's ability to channel funds into the most sensitive sectors of the economy. Now all these restrictions are removed, which will expand the number of beneficiaries of the program and attract new investments. This, in turn, will facilitate effective implementation of the government's long-term economic development program through more flexible use of public funds. Moreover, in August last year, a decision was made that further complicated the achievement of these goals, as a result of which it was easier for private companies to attract loans from commercial banks than to apply to the fund. Currently, 60 companies are beneficiaries of the program, negotiations are underway with 14 companies, 4 are close to signing an agreement with the fund.
At the same time, as noted by the Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia Atom Janjughazyan, the fund's investments are carried out, as a rule, in two directions - programs with a high degree of profitability and real programs. So, if the fund invests $ 9.1 million, the volume of investments of other program participants should amount to $ 43.6 million. This measure, as noted by the Minister of Finance, is designed to ensure the entry of reputable international companies into the Armenian market. The state, according to Janjughazyan, invests in the most vulnerable areas, and the presented draft decision may negatively affect the goals of the state and the fund. The state must be able to manage risks. At the same time, RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recalled the experimental nature of this program, which has an anti-crisis nature. And today, as the prime minister noted, there is no consensus in the government on this issue.
The discussion in the coordinating committee, where there was also no consensus, did not help the situation. For this reason, it was decided to determine the issue presented by an open vote in the government. However, according to Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan, this proposal is not entirely appropriate. The government of the country has placed 160 billion drams in the fund, and is responsible for these funds. At the same time, the mechanism of private investments has worked and continues to work. Once the decision is made, the problem of identifying the beneficiaries of the program will arise. Note that following the voting results, three members of the government voted against the proposal of the Ministry of Economy, the rest - for. Thus, the draft decision was adopted.
