BY 2008 DRAFT STATE BUDGET, EXPENDITURES ON MFA TO MAKE 5.88 BILLION DRAMS

Noyan Tapan
Nov 1, 2007

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 1, NOYAN TAPAN. By the 2008 draft state budget of
the RA, expenditures on maintenance of the staff of the RA Ministry
of Foreign Affairs (MFA), embassies and representative missions
will amount to 5.88 bln drams, exceeding by about 400 mln drams
the 2007 index. Payments for Armenia’s membesrhip of international
organizations will make 865 mln drams, which is less by 5 mln drams
than the 2007 index due to the depreciation of foreign currencies
against the Armenian dram.

Out of the total allocations for the MFA, 200 mln drams is envisaged
for purchasing embassy buildings, 850 mln drams – for maintenance of
the RA MFA, which exceeds by 96.2 mln drams the 2007 index. Most of the
difference – 90 mln drams is conditioned by a rise in salaries of the
staff. In particular, the basic offficial salary rate of civil servants
at the MFA will make 40 thousand drams instead of 35.5 thousand drams
in 2007, the official salary rates of diplomats working at the MFA,
and the amount of compensation related to monthly expenses of Armenian
diplomats serving in foreign states will increase by 20%.

The RA first deputy minister of finance and economy Pavel Safarian
said at the November 1 sitting of the National Assembly standing
committees that 158 persons currently have diplomatic ranks at the
RA MFA. In 2008, their average salary will make about 200 thousand
drams instead of 161 thousand drams (about 490 USD) in 2007.

It is envisaged to allocate 4 bln 666 mln drams for the maintenance
of embassies in 2008, which is more by 302 mln drams as compared with
the 2007 allocations.