Need for reducing staff, expenses - minister 

ArmInfo.Given the fiscal situation, there is a need to optimize the state apparatus and reduce expenses. This was stated by the RA Minister of Finance Vahe Hovhannisyan on October 30 in the committees of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia during the hearings on the draft state budget of Armenia for 2025. 

He noted that the funding volumes for almost all state administration  apparatuses will be reduced in the next financial year. It is  important, the minister continued, to work with the same efforts, but  with fewer resources by increasing financial resources and optimizing  the apparatuses. "In recent years, the budget of Armenia has  increased sharply, the salaries of the apparatus employees have  increased significantly, and now it is time to pay attention to the  optimization of the apparatuses," Vahe Hovhannisyan emphasized. 

As an example, he cited the volumes of upcoming budgetary allocations  for the maintenance of the apparatus of the Prime Minister of the  Republic of Armenia. In 2025, 24.3 billion drams will be allocated  for its needs, which is 2.5% or 632 million drams less than envisaged  in the 2024 budget. The Prime Minister's Office will allocate 20  billion drams for current expenses, which is 4% less than in the  current year, and 4.1 billion drams for capital expenditures, which  is 6% more than in 2024.

In 2025, 1.658 billion drams will be allocated from the state budget  of Armenia to support the Office of the President of the Republic of  Armenia, which is 6.4% or 112 million drams less than in the current  year.  Current expenses will amount to 1.617 million drams, which is  4.6% less than in 2024, and capital expenses - 41 million drams or  51% less than in the current year. 

The budget of the National Assembly of Armenia in 2025 will amount to  7.072 billion drams, which is 2.6% or 191 million drams less than the  volume of allocations envisaged by the 2024 budget. 6.019 billion  drams will be allocated for the current expenses of the staff of the  National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, which is 1.2% less than  in the current year, and 257 million drams for capital expenditures,  or 30% less than the volume of expenses in the current year. 

According to the draft budget for 2025, in the conditions of ensuring  GDP growth of 5.6%, 3.5% GDP deflator and average inflation of 3.6%,  the state budget revenues of Armenia next year will increase by 279.5  billion drams - to 2 trillion 873.1 billion drams (about $ 7.4  billion), which is 11% more than the expected figure for the current  year. State treasury expenditures are planned at the level of 3  trillion 482.4 billion ($ 7.8 billion) or 31.5% of GDP, which is 13%  more than expectations for 2024 (30.4%). The deficit in 2025 will  amount to 609.4 billion drams or 5.5% of GDP, against 482.9 billion  drams or 4.6% of GDP in the budget approved for the current year.