DISCUSSIONS OF 2008 DRAFT STATE BUDGET START IN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY STANDING COMMITTEES
Noyan Tapan
Oct 29 2007
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 29, NOYAN TAPAN. The discussion of the 2008 draft
state budget started at the joint sitting of the National Assembly
standing committees on October 29. According to the RA minister of
finance and economy Vardan Khachatrian, the draft has been developed
in accordance with the long-term governmental program and the 2008-2010
program on state medium-term expenditures.
Structure of the state budgetary revenues, expenditures, and
deficit financing sources has undergone some changes as compared
with previous years, which is conditioned by the transfer to a new
budgetary classification – the state finance statistics (GSS) – 2001
in 2008. The minister said that this has resulted in some inconsistency
in the indices being developed for 2008 and the summary indices of the
previous years. In addition to the transfer to the new classification,
there is another difference: the revenues and expenditures of the
compulsory social insurance budget have been included in the RA
state budget.
The draft envisages state budgetary revenues in the amount of 744.8 bln
drams, which makes up 21.2% of GDP (by the current classification, the
revenues would make 752.8 bln drams or 21.4% of GDP). The expenditures
are envisaged in the amount of 820.8 bln drams or 23.3% of GDP (855
bln drams or 24.3% of GDP), the deficit – 76 bln drams or 2.1% of GDP
(102.2 bln drams or 2.9% of GDP).
The following macroeconomic indices form the basis of the draft: 10%
real GDP growth, 4% GDP deflator, inflation of 4% +-1.5%, GDP per
capita of 3,237.5 USD. The exchange rate of 336.5 drams effective as
of September 1, 2007, was taken as the basis for calculations.
In 2008, the state debt of Armenia will amount to 1.73 bln USD,
including the foreign debt of about 1.46 bln USD.