A delegation of the RA Ministry of Finance led by Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan is participating in the spring meetings of the boards of governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) in Washington.
The first day of the visit to Washington began with a meeting with Deputy Executive Director of the IMF Bo Li, during which the Ministry of Finance presented the macroeconomic situation of Armenia, touched upon the three-year IMF reserve program and the third review under it and the recorded results. The Minister thanked the IMF for its continued support of the RA government's reform program, especially through technical assistance instruments. In turn, the IMF Vice President expressed his readiness to continue support in the future.
The delegation of the Ministry of Finance also held separate meetings with the World Bank education and transport teams, during which the parties discussed the prospects for cooperation in these areas, as well as issues related to the possibilities of Armenia’s participation in large regional transport projects.
In close cooperation with WB partners, a separate meeting of the “Global Preferential Financing Instrument Fund” was also organized for the Armenian delegation, in which representatives of a number of donor countries to the Fund took part. During the meeting, the minister presented support programs for the RA government aimed at meeting the priority needs of internally displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as details of the medium-term programs being developed. Within the framework of the latter, the priority of providing housing for internally displaced persons was especially emphasized.
Let us recall that on December 11, 2023, the Republic of Armenia became a beneficiary of the “Global Concessional Financing Facility” created by the World Bank (WB), the purpose of which is to support countries hosting refugees. The Dutch government has already allocated 10 million euros to the fund in favor of Armenia, and the United States - 5 million euros.
On the second day of the spring meetings of the IMF/WB Board of Governors, the Armenian delegation took part in a discussion of cooperation and peace initiatives within the framework of the “Middle Corridor”. In particular, the prospects and directions of the Republic of Armenia’s possible participation in the “Middle Corridor” project were discussed. The Armenian side emphasized the importance of the RA's participation in such regional initiatives and expressed its readiness to participate in the work necessary to join the latter.
The delegation of the Ministry of Finance also met with the executive director of the group of countries including Armenia, Mr. Eugene Rhuggenaath. During the meeting, the parties discussed issues related to current cooperation, as well as upcoming programs in the water, medical and energy sectors, and the current budget support program was also highlighted. The needs of internally displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh and possible options for meeting them, as well as issues of financing their integration mechanisms, were also discussed.
Meetings were also held with the IMF Executive Director representing Armenia, Paul Hilbers, and the head of the IMF mission in Armenia, Iva Petrova. The parties touched upon reforms carried out within the framework of ongoing cooperation with the IMF, the three-year IMF Reserve Program and the third review within the latter.
