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Region: Eastern Europe
Capital: Yerevan
Population: 2,968,586 (July 2008 est.)
Surface area: 29,800 square km
Currency: dram
GDP per capita: purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2007 est.)
Historic background:
Armenia was incorporated into Russia in 1828 and the USSR in 1920. Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Muslim Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated region, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began fighting over the area in 1988; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. By May 1994, when a cease-fire took hold, Armenian forces held Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper. The economies of both sides have been hurt by their inability to make substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution. Turkey imposed an economic blockade on Armenia and closed the common border because of the Armenian occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas.
Economy – overview:
Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in exchange for raw materials and energy. Since the implosion of the USSR in December 1991, Armenia has switched to small-scale agriculture away from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet era. The agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and updated technology. The privatization of industry has been at a slower pace, but has been given renewed emphasis by the current administration. Armenia is a food importer, and its mineral deposits (copper, gold, bauxite) are small. By 1994, however, the Armenian Government had launched an ambitious IMF-sponsored economic liberalization program that resulted in positive growth rates in 1995-2003. Armenia joined the WTO in January 2003. Armenia also has managed to slash inflation, stabilize the local currency (the dram), and privatize most small- and medium-sized enterprises. Armenia is now a net energy exporter, although it does not have sufficient generating capacity to replace Metsamor, which is under international pressure to close. The electricity distribution system was privatized in 2002. Armenia's severe trade imbalance has been offset somewhat by international aid and foreign direct investment. Economic ties with Russia remain close, especially in the energy sector.
Human Development Index 2008 ranking: 83 out of 177
Official Development Assistance and Major Development Partners: Net ODA to Armenia was US$213 million in 2006. The major development partners are the United States, the IDA, and Germany.
Total External Debt (2007): $1.372 billion (est.)
HIPC Position (as of 2008): Not eligible
United Nations Membership date: 2 March 1992
New York Mission:
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Armenia to the United Nations
119 East 36th Street
New York, N.Y. 10016 USA
Telephone: 212-686-9079
Fax: 212-686-3934
CIA World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. www.cia.gov
Development, Recipient Aid Charts. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. www.oecd.org
Human Development Report 2008.United Nations Development Programme. www.undp.org
Updated July 2008
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