USAID AND EBRD SUPPORT SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE ENTERPRISES IN ARMENIA

Lragir, Armenia
July 16 2007

July 16, 2007, Ambassador Rudolf Perina, Charge d’Affaires a.i. of
the U.S. Embassy, signed an agreement between the U.S. Agency
for International Development (USAID) and the European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in support of the EBRD’s Business
Advisory Services (BAS) program. The U.S. Embassy reported that the
BAS Program has two main objectives: (1) to assist small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) in their business development and (2) to support the
professional development of local business consulting service-providing
companies. A minimum of 180 projects are expected to be undertaken
with the help of USAID’s financing. BAS has been operating in Armenia
since May 2003 and has carried out over 365 projects.

Ambassador Perina lauded this new level of cooperation between EBRD
and USAID, highlighting the main goals of the USAID/EBRD three-year
program, which include increasing the number of small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) in Armenia’s rural and poor areas and improving
business productivity and turnover. USAID’s grant will help the
program through 2010.