NKR PRESIDENT BAKO SAKAYAN’S SPEECH AT MEETING OF THE STATE TAX SERVICE

armradio.am
21.01.2009 16:08

On 21 January President Bako Sakayan delivered a speech at the
reporting meeting of the State Tax Service under the NKR Cabinet
of Ministers, Press Office of the NKR President reported. President
Sahakyan stated:

"Dear attendees,

The State Tax Service plays an important role in the development of
the economy of our republic. The reputation of our state from the
perspective of launching economic activities and the confidence of
investors in it depend to a large extent on your effective work.

I would like to mention that within the reporting period serious
work has been done within the system of the state tax service, which
overall I evaluate as positive. Appropriate figures reflect tangible
quantitative and qualitative changes have taken place.

In the year of 2008 the total volume of state budget incomes, duties
and obligatory social welfare payments has constituted 17 billion 271
million AMD, which enabled to ensure the over-implementation of the
annual plan assignment. The volume of these inflows surpasses the
same figures of 2007 by 3.5 billion drams or by 25.6 percent. And
this is taking place against the background of the current global
financial crisis due to which the biggest taxpayer of our republic,
the "Base Metals" CJSC, has reduced its industrial production volumes
thus =0 Adepriving state budget of 1.6 billion dram fund inflow.

The targeted efforts to eliminate double standards and different
game rules for the market participants resulted in substantial
improvement of the tax discipline, as well as the level of tax service,
particularly in the sphere of trade.

At the same time it should be always kept in mind that that tax
collection process should not be an obstacle for entrepreneurial
activities, especially for the development of small and medium size
businesses. This can be achieved only by creating equal conditions
for all business entities thus providing entrepreneurs an opportunity
to develop and enlarge their business and direct resources to solve
different social problems.

In this regard I consider necessary to further improve tax legislation
and carry out measures that will result in increasing the volume of
foreign and domestic investments. Special attention should be paid to
proper organization of supervision directed to reveal shadow economic
entities and bring them to legal field.

It is gratifying that in the previous year the state budget received 1
billion 97 million drams as trade tax, which is the fulfillment of the
set goals by 163.8 percent and is more than twice the corresponding
figures of 2007. This fact depicts the efficiency of the measures
taken against shadow phenomena. The introduction of cash registers
has also contributed to this efficiency. This in its turn im proved
the standards of service.

To improve the functioning of the system it is necessary to simplify
tax administration as much as possible, decrease unnecessary
bureaucratic procrastination, make available the introduced changes
to economic entities, establish normal partnership with them.

Within this context I consider important to carry out proper cadre
policy based on professionalism and moral qualities of employees. A
persistent and continuous struggle should be waged against violations
and other negative phenomena without which it will be impossible to
fulfill tasks put in front of the system. These tasks of 2009 will
be numerous and various too.

I would like to be confident that you will do everything possible to
organize the work of the system in an effective way. The authorities
in their turn will assist you in every possible way and will keep in
the spotlight this important sphere the problem it faces."