ARMENIA’S PENSION SYSTEM NEEDS IMPROVEMENT: WB RESEARCH
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
July 23 2007
YEREVAN, July 23. /ARKA/. The situation with pensioners should be
improved by strengthening the country’s pension system in Armenia,
Head of the WB Yerevan Office Aristomene Varudakis reported in Yerevan
Monday, presenting results of the WB research "Fiscal Policy and
Economic Growth. Lessons for Eastern Europe and Central Asia".
"The situation in Armenia is different from that of East European
countries and Central Asia, where the number of pensioners exceeds
that of tax payers, and rapid ageing of the population is underway.
However, there are other problems in Armenia. In particular, a pension
amounts to 17% of the average salary," he said.
According to Varudakis, World Bank’s research shows that Armenia’s
pension system is small, the level of involvement and discipline is
low, and pension expenses amount to less than 5% of the GDP. For
instance, in Albania and Kyrgyzstan this indicator amounts to 5%,
in Turkey, Romania, Slovakia – about 7%, Croatia – about 13%, Ukraine
and Poland – over 15%.
"As a country with average incomes, Armenia should unite systems of
social and private pension deductions with social aid, dependent on
paying capacity.
The number of Armenian pensioners currently totals about 530ths
citizens, and the average pension totals AMD 10,800 (about $31).