PRESS RELEASE
Armenian International Policy Research Group
P.O. Box 28179
Washington, DC 20038-9998
USA
Phone: (202) 623-8605, (202) 458-2589
Fax: (202) 478-0934
E-mail: postmaster@armpolicyresearch.org
Yerevan Office
40 Baghramian Ave.
Yerevan, Armenia 375 019
Phone: (3741) 512-670
Fax: (3741) 512-679
Conference on Economic Development of Armenia in honor of
Professor of Economics Armen Alchian of UCLA
Contact: Ara.Khanjian@armpolicyresearch.org,
David.Grigoria n@armpolicyresearch.org
On May 6, 2006, a conference entitled “Armenia: Challenges of
Sustainable Development,” organized in honor of Professor Armen Alchian,
was held at the University of California, Los Angeles. The conference
was organized by the Armenian International Policy Research Group
(AIPRG), UCLA Armenian Educational Foundation Chair in Modern Armenian
History, UCLA Department of Economics, and UCLA Center for Near Eastern
Studies. The event was attended by over 150 participants, including
members of the UCLA Economics faculty and of various Armenian
organizations, as well as students.
Professor Richard Hovannisian, the Armenian Educational Foundation Chair
in Modern Armenian History, welcomed the participants and offered his
insights on the role of economic development in Armenia. He was followed
by a prominent UCLA economist, Professor Harold Demsetz, who discussed
the contributions of Armen Alchian to Economic Theory. His remarks
covered Alchian’s insightful observations and theories about the Great
Depression, the behavior of the firm, and consumer rationality.
Professor Demsetz also discussed his own research collaboration with
Alchian, and the impact Alchian had on his students throughout the years
of his career at UCLA. The participants then greeted Professor Alchian
with a standing ovation. Alchian, who is 92 years of age and is retired,
thanked the organizers of the event and spoke about his affection for
economics.
The first plenary session of the conference focused on the recent book
on Armenia published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), “Growth
and Poverty Reduction in Armenia: Achievements and Challenges,” and was
moderated by another prominent UCLA economist, Professor Michael
Intriligator. The presenter, IMF’s former mission chief to Armenia, Dr.
Enrique Gelbard, outlined the key elements of Armenia’s macroeconomic
performance in recent years. While focusing on impressive aggregate
growth and low inflation numbers in Armenia, Dr. Gelbard also emphasized
the need for more structural reforms, particularly those in the
governance realm, for Armenia to sustain this growth momentum. This was
followed by comments from three discussants-Professor William Ascher of
Claremont McKenna College and AIPRG Advisory Board; Professor Daniel
Mazmanian of the University of Southern California; and Professor Ara
Khanjian of Ventura College and AIPRG. While Ascher’s comments spoke to
the potential vulnerabilities of Armenia’s performance going forward and
ways to mitigate those, Mazmanian focused on reducing corruption and
improving governance as a strategy in the drive for sustainable growth,
and Khanjian reviewed poverty and related social aspects of the IMF’s
report. This was followed by remarks from Professor Intriligator, who
offered his perspective on challenges of the transition period and
opened the floor for questions. The subsequent active
question-and-answer session was followed by the lunch recess, during
which the participants exchanged views.
The afternoon session was chaired by Professor Lee Ohanian of UCLA
Economics Department. The first of the three presentations, made by Dr.
David Grigorian of the IMF and AIPRG, touched upon the issue of low tax
revenue collection in Armenia and factors behind this phenomenon.
Subsequently, Dr. Federica Saliola of the World Bank and University of
Rome III presented her work on business climate and firm productivity in
Armenia in 2002-2005, and put that in perspective with Armenia’s
regional competitors. Finally, Nerses Yeritsyan of the Central Bank of
Armenia and AIPRG discussed the achievements and challenges of Armenia’s
financial sector and laid out the Central Bank’s ambitious plan of
reforming the sector. As earlier, active question-and-answer sessions
took place after each presentation.
The conference was followed by a dinner reception hosted by Mr. and Mrs.
Vahik and Alice Petrossian at their Glendale residence.
About Professor Alchian
Professor Armen Alchian was born on April 12, 1914, in Fresno,
California. In 1932 he enrolled at Fresno State College and transferred
to Stanford in 1934, where he received his B.A. in 1936 and his Ph.D. in
1943, with a dissertation titled “The Effects of Changes in the General
Wage Structure.” In 1940-41 he was at the National Bureau of Economic
Research and Harvard University and in 1942 at the University of Oregon.
>From 1942 to 1945, he served in the U.S. Army Air Force as a statistical
specialist. He arrived at UCLA in 1946, becoming associated at the same
time with the RAND Corporation, and was promoted to full professor in
1958. He has received numerous awards and honors over the years and in
1996 was selected as a Distinguished Fellow of the American Economic
Association.
Professor Alchian is widely known to his students and colleagues as the
founder of the “UCLA tradition” in economics, a tradition that continues
to this day. It emphasizes that individual behavior is self-seeking and
“rational” and that this has many unanticipated consequences. Above all,
Alchian is noted for the impact he has had on generations of UCLA
graduate students, in no small measure through his first year course in
microeconomics. Among his many well-known students is William Sharpe,
who received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science in 1990 for
his work on finance.
About AIPRG
The Armenian International Policy Research Group is a nonpartisan,
nonpolitical association that researches and encourages the discussion
of public policy issues in Armenia and the Diaspora. AIPRG aims to
consolidate the existing Armenia-related expertise by bringing together
accomplished researchers and practitioners who specialize in economics,
political science, law, and government affairs. To obtain more
information about AIPRG’s mission and activities, including the
materials presented at the Armen Alchian conference, please visit