Wednesday, 10 September 2008
Poverty Reduction Strategic Program (PRSP) Coordination Council met at the Office of Government under the chairmanship of council head, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan.
Council members have been presented the amended version of the Poverty Reduction Strategic Program (PRSP-2) and a draft of the program implementation partnership agreement.
To begin with, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan noted that the current version has gone through several stages of preparation: "We have tried to bring together all of the proposals received, to identify those problems of concern to our partners," he said. The Prime Minister made a point of ensuring that the government program and the PRSP are compatible and went on to mention the amount of work done to that effect.
In presenting the amended program, head of the PRSP task force, deputy minister of finance Suren Karayan indicated that this is the second time a comprehensive strategy for the country's long-term development has been drafted based on the experience gained during the preparation of PRSP-1. Unlike the first paper, this new program covers the whole range of economic development endeavors and reforms with a clear-cut action plan and measurable targets: the areas and the scope of social policy have been defined with a special focus placed on rural areas and smoothing of territorial development discrepancies.
Suren Karayan underscored that the finalized PRSP has been given wide publicity and is available at www.prsp.am.
In presenting the draft implementation partnership agreement, the head of the task force noted that based on the principle of harmonizing the interests of individuals representative of different spheres, public institutes, social groups and layers, the agreement seeks to achieve a consensus regarding higher involvement of the public in PRSP drafting (including the revisions), implementation, monitoring and evaluation. The agreement is based on RA laws and regulations, the PRSP and the development concept of the PRSP Social Partnership Institute.
Following the debates, it was decided to allow a month's period for discussing any comments and proposals received from stakeholders and finalizing the agreement. Another month was given to complete the process of signing.
Coordinator of the World Bank Yerevan office Aristomene Varudakis complimented the government and the task force for quality expertise provided during the development stage. On behalf of the World Bank, he expressed satisfaction at the high level of public participation and the wide coverage of stakeholders. "Our suggestions have been included in the program and incorporated with the revised paper. Together with the IMF, the World Bank will issue a final opinion in due course," he stated. Mr. Varudakis also said to be hopeful that similar broad public involvement will be ensured during the implementation and monitoring phases. He assured of the Bank's willingness to assist Armenia all the way through the five years of program implementation.
Head of the IMF Armenia office Martha Castello-Branco joined Mr. Varudakis in assuring of the Fund's readiness to support the government with PRSP implementation. She expressed satisfaction at the program's nearing successful completion and emphasized the public's active engagement as evidenced by high council session attendance. She prioritized the availability of a business environment betterment clause in the paper, as well as the need for adapting the PRSP to the concept note on pension reform. Ms. Branco said to be pleased that the proposals of the IMF have been taken into consideration.
President of the Armenian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (Employers) Armen Ghazaryan welcomed the PRSP-2 provision on improvement of the business environment. He mentioned that the task force kept in close touch with the stakeholders all along the development process.
In conclusion, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan suggested endorsing the paper, account taken of the comments and proposals received.
The Ministry of Finance suggested altering the title of the document as it differs from the first paper both in substance and structure: it goes beyond poverty reduction and takes up a character of economic development program.
The suggestion aroused a lot of controversy: alternatives were proposed, including naming the paper "Sustainable Development Program."
Tigran Sargsyan pointed out that for lack of comprehensiveness the program is still far from being called a sustainable development program though it may be upgraded if additional discussions and proposals are engaged. At the same time, he emphasized that sustainable development is at the heart of the government program and suggested amending the title of the document considering that the path to poverty reduction goes through sustained development.
The proposals were put to the vote resulting in an amended title for the paper, namely Sustainable Development Concept.
