WB EXPERT: ARMENIA DOES NOT PROPERLY USE DIASPORA’S POTENTIAL TO ACCELARATE ITS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

ARMINFO News Agency
September 19, 2006 Tuesday

At the Armenia-Diaspora conference in Yerevan Yevgeni Kuznetsov,
World Bank Senior Economist told an ArmInfo correspondent that
Armenia doesn’t properly use the Diaspora’s potential to accelerate
its economic development.

In Armenia money is invested mostly in infrastructure and
humanitarian programs. It is a "very shortsighted policy" and has
no relation to the country’s economic development. Armenia should
get science-intensive direct investments from the industrialized
countries with large Armenian communities, for example, France and
USA. First and foremost, it is necessary to attract investments from
transnational corporations. India is a good example of effective use
of Diaspora potential. The Indian Diaspora opened IBM and Motorola
scientific centers in the country and saw that they successfully
operate. Kuznetsov noted that the Diaspora itself should invest
no money, because Armenia is not China. For the inflow of such
investments Armenia should implement a number of interim projects to
develop cooperation between the Diaspora and the local authorities
and businessmen. It should start with raising the quality of higher
education to the international standards and establishing links with
the economy. The WB expert advises Armenia to create a center of
postal tuition and fund of venture capital.