Armenia Central Bank
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A AFGHANISTAN [Read More]
Armenia
The law requires security forces to obtain a search warrant from a judge before conducting a search. Security forces were refused warrant issuance due to lack of evidence in several cases; however, in practice there were charges that searches continued to be made without a warrant, both in regard to the October 1999 killings in parliament and in the arrest of Arkady Vardanyan (see Section 2.b.). The Constitution provides that the judiciary must exclude evidence obtained without a warrant. Legislation passed in 1997 to improve security of bank deposits has been enforced. ... [Read More]
Europe and Central Asia
AlbaniaI. Summary Drug trafficking is a significant problem in Albania, which is a major transit country for heroin from Afghanistan and Turkey destined for markets throughout Europe. Organized crime groups use Albania as a transit point for drug and other types of smuggling due to the country’s strategic location, weak police and judicial systems, and porous borders. The most common illegal drugs are heroin, marijuana, and to a lesser extent, cocaine. Heroin is typically transported through the "Balkans Route" of Turkey-Bulgaria-Macedonia-Albania, and on to Italy, Greece and the Netherlands. Cocaine is smuggled from South America, via the United States, Italy, Spain, Greece or the Netherlands, and ... [Read More]
Regional English Language Officers Worldwide -- Office of English Language Programs
In addition to Washington-based RELOs, sixteen officers are assigned overseas: Africa (AF) Dakar (Senegal) – Francophone West Africa Pretoria (S. Africa) – Southern Africa, Madagascar East Asia and Pacific (EAP) Bangkok (Thailand) – East Asia Jakarta (Indonesia) – Southeast Asia Europe and Eurasia (EUR) Ankara (Turkey) Budapest (Hungary) – Central/Eastern Europe Kiev (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine) Moscow (Russia) Tashkent (Uzbekistan) – Central Asia Near East (NEA) ... [Read More]
U.S. Assistance to Armenia – Fiscal Year 2004
Broadening the base of economic growth through job creation and labor market development is the primary goal of our economic assistance programs. Through our assistance programs, we are seeking to increase access to credit for entrepreneurs, develop markets for agribusinesses, improve tax and customs performance, improve budget management, strengthen central bank supervision, and boost progress in promising sectors, such as information technology. U.S. advisors support a budget training center with equipment, training materials, and technical advice. ... [Read More]
Armenia
Armenia is a constitutional parliamentary democracy; however, the directly elected President has extensive powers of decree and appointment, including of the Prime Minister, that are not balanced by the legislature or an independent judiciary. Robert Kocharian was re-elected President in March. There were flaws and substantial irregularities in both the February and March rounds of the presidential elections and in the May parliamentary elections. A constitutional referendum on executive powers failed in a national vote in May. The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary; however, in practice, judges were subject to pressure from the executive and executive branches, and corruption was a problem.The National Police and the National Security Service are responsible for domestic security, intelligence activities, border controls, and the police force. The civilian authorities maint ... [Read More]
V. Country Narratives -- Countries A through G
Cyprus is a destination country for women trafficked from Eastern and Central Europe for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Traffickers who forced women into prostitution continued to fraudulently recruit victims for work as dancers in cabarets and nightclubs on short-term "artiste" visas, for work in pubs and bars on employment visas, or for illegal work on tourist or student visas. There was increasing evidence of Chinese women being trafficked for sexual exploitation in Cyprus. The Government of Cyprus does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Cyprus made some progress in its anti-trafficking efforts over the past year. The new police anti-trafficking unit produced successful results and showed vigilance in combating the problem. Government recognition of the problem improve ... [Read More]
Armenia
The transition from a centralized, controlled economy to a market economy continued to move forward, although the industrial sector did not function at peak capacity and its output remained low. According to results of the October 2001 census, the country had a total population of approximately three million persons. Unemployment remained high, and there was a high degree of income inequality. Unemployment was approximately 9.6 percent, according to the Government; however, other sources estimated the unemployment rate to be approximately 40 percent. A significant amount of economic activity, unofficially estimated between 40 and 50 percent, was not captured by government accounting or taxation. The inflation rate was 2 percent. Almost all small and medium-sized enterprises have been privatized, as has all agricultural land. Emigration decreased since 2001, but still remained a problem. Foreign assistance and remittances from Armenians abroad played a major role in sustain ... [Read More]
Armenia
According to unofficial statistics the country has a total population of approximately 2 million persons (official estimates dating back 10 years were 3.4 million). The transition from a centralized, controlled economy to a market economy continued to move forward, although the industrial sector did not function at peak capacity and its output remained low. Unemployment remained high, and there is a high degree of income inequality, but reliable figures were not available; unemployment was approximately 10 percent according to the Government; however, other sources estimated the unemployment rate to be approximately 40 percent. Women account for approximately 60 percent of the unemployed. A significant amount of economic activity, unofficially estimates between 40 and 60 percent, is not captured by government accounting or taxation. The per capita gross domestic product (GDP) increased approximately 9 percent, to approximately $550 (308,000 drams). Inflation was 2.9 percent for the yea ... [Read More]
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