Armenia Economy

(Nominations/personnel announcements, economy, Bush/Sharon's meeting, ... [Read More]

V. Country Narratives -- Countries A through G

Cote d’Ivoire is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Available information indicates that the overall magnitude of trafficking in Cote d’Ivoire has diminished in the past few years. Ivoirian girls are trafficked within the country for exploitation as domestic servants, street vendors, and prostitutes, and occasionally are lured to Europe where they are forced into commercial sexual exploitation after being deceived by false marriage proposals. Children from Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, and Benin are trafficked to Cote d’Ivoire for agricultural and domestic labor exploitation. Nigerian and Ghanaian women and children, as well as some females from Algeria, Morocco, China, and the Philippines, are trafficked to Abidjan and other large towns for sexual exploitation. Some of these women also transit Cote d’Iv ... [Read More]

Armenia

The transition from a centralized, controlled economy to a market economy continued to move forward, although the industrial sector still is not functioning at peak capacity and its output remains low. Unemployment remains high, resulting in a high degree of income inequality, but the exact figure is difficult to quantify. This is because a significant amount of economic activity, perhaps as much as 40 percent, is not captured by government accounting or taxation; unemployment is approximately 12.1 percent according to the Government; however, other services estimate the unemployment rate to be approximately 50 percent. Women form a disproportionately large number of the unemployed. Most small and medium-sized enterprises have been privatized, as has most agricultural land. All landowners now have received titles to their land, which are protected by the Constitution. The passage of a bill establishing a strict and transparent system for bidding on privatization of the electrical distr ... [Read More]

Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Armenia

The slow but steady transition from a centralized command economy to a market economy continued. The country's economy remained primarily agricultural with manufacturing and expanding service sectors. The country's population was approximately 3 million. During the year, gross domestic product grew an estimated 10.1 percent. The inflation rate was 7 percent; unemployment was estimated at approximately 20 percent, and, in most sectors, wages kept pace with inflation. There was a high degree of corruption, income inequality, and continued consolidation of wealth into the hands of a select few. Approximately 43 percent of the population lived below the official poverty rate, a 7 percent decrease from previous years, and there was a large shadow economy. ... [Read More]

US Department Of State Post Report

Armenia's economy collapsed with the fall of the Soviet Union and the closure of its borders with Turkey and Azerbaijan following the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh.  After recent years of strong recovery, the Armenian economy is now equal to 73.6 percent of its size in 1990.  The Armenian government has made great progress in moving Armenia from a centralized state with a planned economy to a democratic society with a free market economic system.  Privatization of key industries, especially in the energy sector, has ended the chronic shortages Armenia experienced in the early nineties.  Through privatization the country has modernized its telecommunications system, although demand still exceeds capacity and there remains much work to be done to provide adequate and affordable communication services.  ... [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

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]

Armenia

COUNTRY DESCRIPTION: Armenia is a constitutional republic with a developing economy. Tourist facilities, especially outside Yerevan, the capital, are not highly developed, and many of the goods and services taken for granted in other countries may be difficult to obtain. Read the  Department of State Background Notes on Armenia  for additional information. ... [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]

Armenia (04/05)

Like other New Independent States of the former Soviet Union, Armenia's economy suffers from the legacy of a centrally planned economy and the breakdown of former Soviet trading patterns. Soviet investment in and support of Armenian industry has virtually disappeared, so that few major enterprises are still able to function. In addition, the effects of the 1988 earthquake, which killed more than 25,000 people and made 500,000 homeless, are still being felt. Although a cease-fire has held since 1994, the conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh has not been resolved. The consequent closure of both the Azerbaijani and Turkish borders has devastated the economy, because of Armenia's dependence on outside supplies of energy and most raw materials. Land routes through Azerbaijan and Turkey are closed; routes through Georgia and Iran are inadequate or unreliable. In 1992-93, GDP fell nearly 60% from its 1989 level. The national currency, the dram, suffered hyperinflation for the first ... [Read More]