Monday, 21 March 2011
Prime Minister welcomes participants of international conference with economic competition-related agenda
Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan attended an international conference dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the founding of the State commission on protection of economic competition (SCPEC) of the Republic of Armenia.
Scheduled for March 12-23, the forum is attended by secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development Supachaj Panitchpakdi, representatives of Armenia-accredited embassies and international organizations, as well as heads of antimonopoly authorities from over 15 countries.
Welcoming the participants of the conference, Tigran Sargsyan noted that it will enable to sum up the 10-year-long activity of the SCPEC, reveal the existing problems, learn other countries’ experience and specify tasks ahead.
The head of government emphasized that competition is vital to transition economies and in view of the above, the SCPEC has a key role to play by revealing the obstacles to competition. Concerning the priorities, the Prime Minister stated as follows: “There are a number of objective impediments to economic competition in Armenia.
Firstly, it is the problem of tax and customs administration. Ensuring equal conditions and identical standards for all economic entities is the task number one in this area.
The second task is the transparent work of enterprises enabling control not only on the part of State agencies, but also by civil society. This means that we should pay greater attention to economic entities ensuring that especially the larger ones publish financial reports supported by auditor’s findings.
The third factor is the fight against corruption risks and corruption, in general. It is a well-know fact that corruption is a serious threat for countries like Armenia where complex action is needed to lower the risks and better the business environment.
The fourth circumstance is the public’s attitude to negative phenomena: society must have a clear-cut stance on corruption and shadow economy considering them to be inadmissible in public life.
The fifth objective factor is our geopolitical situation and those political risks facing the region in general".
The scarcity of transport corridors was said to be another objective impediment to economic diversification.
The Prime Minister next outlined the steps designed by the government with a view to tackling the foregoing problems: “First of all, we have an internationally approved clear-cut program of actions in the sphere of tax and customs administration. Realizing that reform capacity needs building in this area, we expect to get additional technical assistance from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. In the meantime, the taxpayers’ reluctance to accept the new rules and regulations continues to be the problem number one for us.
The second problem is the transparent work of the enterprises. We have adopted an unprecedented law compelling some five hundred large entities to publish their audit-supported financial reports.
Thirdly, we need to enhance the efficiency of SCPEC activities. We have the findings of international experts and will try to raise the productivity of the commission’s work.”
As to the separation of powers in the field of audits and checks, the head of government prioritized the study of the international experience emphasizing that the SCPEC will have a decisive say in these matters.
Speaking about the need for raising public awareness, Tigran Sargsyan stated in part: “It is not a secret that if trusted and backed by society, the commission will feel more at ease in making decisions. Based on the above, we expect that getting extra powers from the legislative, the commission will be able to immediately expose the situation in a number of spheres and apply the needed sanctions. We should cooperate closely in order to make our policy clearer to the public at large.”
On behalf of the Government, Tigran Sargsyan thanked the secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development, the representatives of international structures for assistance and congratulated the membership of the SCPEC the anniversary.
Within the framework of the two-day-long long festive events, Armenia’s achievements, problems and tasks in the field of economic competition will be presented along with the experience of other countries and the findings of foreign experts.
