ArmInfo.There are no monopolists in Armenia; economic activity in the country is free, Khachatur Sukiasyan, a member of the Civil Contract parliamentary faction, stated at the discussions of the 2024 the draft state budget.
Sukiasyan cited as an example the high level of tax collection in the country, as a result of which, over the past five years, the volume of funding for the country's armed forces has increased 1.5 times - from 210 billion drams in 2017 to 555 billion in 2024. <In the current conditions of tax collection, any citizen can carry out business activities by paying taxes. All this was the result of the political will of the political team, applying the principles that make it possible to ensure a significant increase in tax revenues," said the businessman.
He pointed out the presence of remnants of systemic corruption that the current government inherited from the previous authorities that have not yet been completely eliminated. "Otherwise, we would have great roads, schools, hospitals, kindergartens, allowing parents of children to work, create additional values and provide for their living," Sukiasyan emphasized, pointing out the need to direct budget funds to generate production and use the latest technologies , the creation of substitute products for foreign analogues, which, in turn, will lead to an increase in export volumes. "The state should pay attention to this fact, since this will provide an opportunity for the reproduction and receipt of new tax resources in the future," the deputy emphasized.
According to the draft state budget, in 2024 the economic growth rate is planned at a level of at least 7%. State treasury revenues are provided at 2 trillion 566 billion drams, which is 15.4% higher than the plan for 2023, and expenses - 3 trillion 17 billion, or 15.9% higher. Among expenses, capital expenditures will amount to 695 billion drams, or 22% more than the plan for 2023. At the end of next year, the tax-to-GDP ratio is planned to increase by 0.75%. The budget deficit will be about 340 billion drams or 3.2% of GDP. As a result, by the end of 2024, the government's public debt to GDP ratio will be 48.4%, that is, below 50%.