YEREVAN, April 3. /ARKA/. Armenia to build up its government spending, possibly by increasing the level of public debt, Economy Minister Tigran Khachatryan said Friday at the Single Information Center.
“The government envisages the growth of its own financial expenses, if necessary, also by increasing the debt, but this should be within reasonable frames, since the people and society will return,” Khachatryan said.
He noted that such an approach is reasonable in the current circumstances, especially considering that the funds are needed to implement certain costs.
However, in his words, the matter still needs a detailed discussion, taking into account the repayment of public debt.
The minister pointed out the need to increase government spending, in particular, on capital construction, roads and other infrastructure costs, which lead to economic activity and high levels of employment.
In his words, such programs need to be carried out in a larger volume than planned. It is also necessary to implement programs of economic assistance and social significance, many of which are already announced and available to businesses.
“We are trying to provide such government assistance so that companies can keep their flows at least at the minimum level, but we also expect the private sector to seek a way out, since their further development will depend on present decisions. Now is a difficult time, and I urge the private sector to find the best solutions to overcome the problems. We are open to proposals for increasing the productivity of state assistance,” Khachatryan said.
According to the National Statistics Committee, the total public debt of Armenia at the end of December 2019 amounted to $ 7 324.167 million, after increasing by $ 158.091 million over the month. The country’s foreign debt at the end of December 2019 amounted to $ 5 789.729 million, after growing by $ 163.477 million over the month.
About $ 5,300.412 million in the foreign debt is the debt of the Armenian government (an increase of $ 186.278 million), and the Central Bank’s debt is $ 489.317 million (a decrease of $ 22.801 million). The domestic debt of Armenia reached $ 1 534.439 million at the end of December after decreasing by $ 5.386 million. -0-
