By Azernews

By Rashid Shirinov

The Armenian government has recently approved the draft state budget for the next year.

The document has many moments showing that the situation in the country is hopeless, because all prospects of Armenia are based on assumptions. The Armenian government expects a 4.2-percent economic growth in the coming year, according to the draft budget, but it is obvious that this will never happen.

Recently, the Armenian Finance Minister Vardan Aramyan has once again upset the population of the country saying that their pensions and salaries will not grow next year, as the budget does not provide any opportunities for these purposes. That is, for the third consecutive year the social spending of the Armenian government remains at the same level. Meanwhile, the cost of living is going up rapidly, and as a result, the middle class is slowly turning into the class of poor.

Armenian economist Mesrop Arakelyan believes that the quality of life of Armenians will not improve next year, because the country’s population live worse with every passing year.

“The main indicator for this is the migration, and today the social factor is the main factor of migration. There was a war in the 1990s, but today people just cannot earn their daily bread, he has told Aysor agency.

The expert believes that it is better to have quite low economic growth, but which will have a significant impact on the welfare of society, rather than to provide such economic growth only thanks to the growth of one or two industries, the economic activities of one or two companies.

Indeed, there is a slowdown in economic growth in almost all sectors of the country’s economy. The decline is 0.9 percent in industry, 9.2 percent in electricity production, 2.2 percent in turnover, and 9.4 percent in agriculture.

Obviously, the doleful situation in Armenia’s economy and society upsets the population which is already tired of the fake promises of the government.

“I am lecturer of the Yerevan State University, our salaries have been reduced because there are no students. And now it does not matter what the government says,” publicist and political scientist Anush Sedrakyan has recently told 1in.am.

She further noted that the incomes of some oligarchs may have increased, but the gross income is primarily determined by the increase in economic status of citizens, but not by the wealth of four or five oligarchs.

There is undeniable truth in Sedrakyan’s words. The Karabakh clan that has been ruling Armenia for many years, the authorities and their teams possess the wealth that ordinary Armenians never dreamed of. The common Armenians have two options ­­– to continue to live their poor life and listen to deceitful promises of the government or to leave the country for good.