Armenia is placed 33rd among 186 countries and is ranked as a “mostly free” country in the 2017 Index of Economic Freedom, an annual guide published by The Heritage Foundation. The Index covers 10 freedoms – from property rights to entrepreneurship.
Other countries in the region are placed as follows: Georgia 13th, Turkey – 60th, Azerbaijan 68th, Iran – 155th.
Armenia’s partners in the Eurasian Economic Union Russia and Kazakhstan are ranked 114th and 42nd respectively, Belarus is 104th, Kyrgyzstan is 89th.
Hing Kong tops the list, followed by Singapore and New Zealand.
“Considerable diversification of Armenia’s economic base has increased economic dynamism, and a decade of strong economic growth has reduced poverty and unemployment rates. Broad simplification of business procedures has facilitated regulatory efficiency. After years of expansionary fiscal policies, efforts have been made to limit the cost of government through more prudent management of public finance,” the report reads.
“Armenia performs relatively well in many categories of economic freedom, but more reforms are needed to enhance judicial independence and government transparency. Despite progress in tackling corruption, particularly in the tax and customs administrations, close relationships within political and business circles raise concerns about cronyism and undue influence,” The Heritage Foundation said.