BRIEF OBSERVATIONS PRODUCED BY THE DONOR ORGANIZATIONS ON the PRSP
GENERAL REMARKS
STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT
PROCEDURAL ISSUES
SUGGESTIONS FOR AMMENDING/INCORPORATING/EMPHASAZING certain issues in the PAPER
SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIAL SECURITY
ECONOMY
LEGISLATION/ JUDICIAL AND LEGAL SYSTEM
HEALTHCARE
EDUCATION
REFUGEES
GENDER ISSUES
PROVISION OF FINANCING NEEDED FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF PRSP
INDICATORS
MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING
PARTICIPATORY PROCESS
REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY ON THE ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
ECONOMY, ECONOMIC POLICIES AND FOREIGN TRADE
FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES AFFECTING FOREIGN TRADE
POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS
TRADE RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME
TRADE-RELATED SERVICES REGIME
Civil Society Partnership Network
PRSP Update, September 2003

BRIEF OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS PRODUCED BY THE DONOR ORGANIZATIONS ON the POVERTY REDUCTION StrATEGY PLAN/PAPER (PRSP)

The UNO: (UNESCO, UNICEF, WFP, UNHCR, UNDP), USAID, WB, EC (FSP, TACIS, AEPLAC), RF Embassy, German Embassy, “Save the Children”, CRS

The donor organizations have been presenting their observations/comments, recommendations and proposals on the Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan/Paper (PRSP) worked out by expert groups at the instance of the Government of the Republic of Armenia. The observations of the expert groups have been presented briefly and separately. Brief observations have been prepared by the UNDP.

The PRSP is a result of close cooperation between the government and civil society. The document contains a package of earnest and substantiated recommendations, and it will serve a profound base for the discussions over the further development of Armenia. The greatest value of the PRSP Armenian project is that it highlights not only (macro-) economic problems, but also social and cultural needs, effective management and struggle against corruption. Approach to poverty reduction problem is both ‘novel’ and promising.

All the specialists from donor organizations express their gratification to the Working Committee, operator and experts’ commission of the PRSP for the work performed in an integrated and professional way. In their opinion, the observations, proposals and recommendations can contribute and make the final version of the PRSP more comprehensive, realistic and effective, and these organizations are ready to cooperate in implementing the PRSP. The briefly presented observations along with the positive aspects and achievements revert to the revealed shortcomings and produce constructive criticism.

GENERAL REMARKS

It is required to bring to adjustment the correlation of the general structure of the document and its logical consecution (see: Reconstruction Project recommended by the EC TACIS).

The PRSP overemphasize “the lenient side” of poverty reduction thus underestimating or ignoring the core problems of economic policy. The profound discussions over such problems as privatization of state enterprises, reconstruction of banks, long-term financial and credit reforms or liberalization of trade are merely lacking. As mainly these problems will be focused in the discussions over the economic policy to be developed and conducted in Armenia, there is a risk that poverty reduction problem will be isolated at a time of developing the policies for these particular branches. Thus, it would be possible to achieve the most important objectives of the PRSP, which is to ensure that the integrity in the mosaics of economic policies is focused on the urgency of poverty reduction.

The English version of the PRSP is poorly worded and edited. Sometimes translator's or editor's mistakes are very inept and preposterous (for instance, reference to “swine and figs” on the 62nd page). However, the most concern is that sometimes the ideas are so tangled that they are comprehended with difficulty. The value of the substantial part of the presented document has been lost in the translation. So, it is strongly required to redact the translation.

The time scope envisaged for the implementation of the project is extremely protracted.

It would be necessary to clarify the distribution of responsibilities between the state and local authorities. This problem is vividly pronounced in the Action Plan enclosed to the PRSP. This Plan constitutes a chain of non-related observations over the project, without any set-forth priorities or estimation of expenses. It reminds more a list of desires, which is hardly accomplishable, rather than an action plan.

The document in general is of a descriptive nature, and it is necessary that specific strategies and certain target-oriented political leverages be reflected there.

It is necessary to distinctly reflect the priority of the projects, both at individual and within different branches.

It is believed that clarification of priorities would result in postponement of some part of projects, until all means required for their fulfillment are available and/or practicable.

It would be required to verify and clarify statistical data and economic terms/terminology used.

Some chapters of the document are too detailed (are abundantly focused on some projects and/or arrangements), some parts teem with the results of various analysis (with figures and facts excessive in number), but strategic plannings /proposals/conclusions are, on the contrary, too scanty. The core problems should be winnowed and the goals of the projects/actions/arrangements should be clearly formulated.

Among the most important problems is the provision of coordination and congruity of the PRSP and Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) (as it is presented in the “Study on the State Spending” by the Steering Committee).

There is no any evaluation of expenses, specially done for social policy.

After bringing the evaluation of expenses to its final form and coordinating it with MTEF budgetary estimates, it would be required to review the set-forth priorities.

The fact that PRSP is intended to be a facility aimed at handling the assistance from the donor organizations does not imply any growth in such assistance. The assistance [aid] rendered by donors to Armenia per capita is now considered to be the greatest in the world, and it is very unlikely that it would considerably grow in the future.

Numerous crucial strategic programs/ arrangements are either less pronouncedly delineated or are not expressed in the state budget at all (for example: improvement in business or strategy for struggle against corruption). It would be required to rectify such approach immediately.

It would be desirable to classify the abbreviations in alphabetical order.

It is necessary to submit proposals on the forms of reaching political consensus.

It is necessary to submit proposals on how to increase the awareness of the society and on the forms of getting their consent.

Substantiated proposals on possible financing would be necessary.

Issues of Concern

The proposal made in the document as “to build and realize demographic policy directed at population upsurge” (page39) causes some concern. The population [e]migrates due to deep downturn in the economy of the country. Increase in the birth rate would not resolve this problem; only certain improvements in the economy can somehow stop the outflow of emigrants. Indeed, the probable result of preventing migration by increasing the birth rate would be as follows: those who are in a position to emigrate would go on emigrating, meanwhile the poorest people again will stay behind, making the social burden and poverty level more intensified.

The idea that budget planning is presently reckoned as local administrative process would be appropriate here. In some city halls [municipalities] community working groups are present at taking decisions by local authorities and take part in adopting the procedure for administrative leverages in revenue collection through open sittings over budgetary discussions. In addition, thank to information centres for citizens, the communities are better informed of their local authorities. This model can be applied also in other towns of Armenia. From the viewpoint of considerable amendments, as the authors of the project pointed out themselves, it would be necessary to introduce changes into some laws, thus giving a bigger opportunity [room] for decentralization and strengthening of the local authorities. The verifying mechanisms exercised by the society towards the activity of local authorities are also essential.

The objectives set forth in the table on the page 30 thereof are neither realistic, nor applicable (compared with the requirements indicated on page 13), as for example, the objective to bring the number of the poor and the poorest to zero. Nevertheless, international financial institutions and major international organizations have volunteered to reduce the number of the poor by half before 2015 (compared with 1999-2000). The indices, indicated on page 30, should be reviewed as per realistic and applicable parameters.

Millennium Goals Declarations (MGD) do not play any core role within the PRSP. The references are not numerous and too far from each other; and no relevant information on how the processes of MGD and PRSP should be interconnected is given.

The MGDs are mentioned for the first time on page 29 (on the very bottom of the page), though the millennium objectives set forth before Armenia (produced in matrix on page 30) do not precisely correspond to the objectives of the country itself. These objectives do not either include food supply as a principal problem of the country (though food supply problem has been indicated among the grave poverty factors in Armenia), nor the SWAP-s are mentioned. The poverty reduction strategy is divided into sectors, and multisectoral approach would be required to apply to resolve the problem. The PRSP should be resulted in inter-sectoral approaches, meanwhile this fact has not anyhow been reflected in the document.

There is no connection between the chapters in the document dealing immediately with social and economic sectors, as for example: there is no connection between social security, labor, human rights, education, healthcare, culture, agriculture, employment and business and refugees or other poor groups.

Due to advisory nature of the document its structure seems to be fragmentary, which means that the same issue is examined and discussed in different sections. For instance, labor market reform from the viewpoint of reduction of unemployment and shadow economy, as well as rationalization of tax system is discussed in a number of different sections. No integrated picture is given as to how such problem of vital importance should be examined. Besides, contradictory data on the same variable/phenomenon are presented in various parts of the given document (for instance, the share of GDP re-distributed through public sector).

The PRSP does not reflect some significant difficulties in the development of Armenia. It is a land-locked country, undergoing economic blockade by its two neighboring countries, which (in other circumstances) should have been the main trade partners. Armenia has also a big, influential and well-off Diaspora, which turns to be a source both for serious problems (for example, brain drain), and for immense opportunities (for example, labor capital for non-official sector, small and medium-sized business). We think that the long-term perspectives of stable human development would be pessimistic, if economic problems with Azerbaijan and Turkey do not find any final resolution. Similarly, though the Diaspora is mentioned in numerous sections, these references remind postscripts. The given references do not bring these issues to the forefront of discussions over the development of Armenia.

The document refers to the stable development policy in agriculture as a detailed paper “clearly” indicating sub-programs and measures to be applied. Draft policy document was widely discussed between the RA Government, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Food Supply Program, as a result of which it was considered as inadequate and decision was taken to review it and bring into accord with the PRSP requirements.

Issues Not-considered in the Project

Among the most important factors, which were obviously disregarded [ignored] in the document, is the standpoint of “interest division”, which is a menacing problem for Armenia. State officials continue conducting shadow economy, concealing the real property belonging to them, controlling the most important branches of economy. As a result, they prefer to maintain the status quo. The issues of omnipresent bribery [corrupt practice] and protectionism remained behind the focus of attention.

To legalize the system of compulsory social security insurance together with its 4 or 5 main components: viz. (i) pension insurance; (ii) medical insurance; (iii) insurance against unemployment; (iv) industrial safety and health insurance is a matter of great urgency. Reforming the insurance system does not burden the state budget very much, since it is based on (i) the payments from workers and employers; (ii) it strengthens the independence of social security payers from the state; (iii) it heightens the responsibility of individuals for the unexpected cases in their lives.

It is necessary to discuss and include into the document the problems of house building in the context of the PRSP. An overall strategic state policy is required to solve the house-building problem faced by the poor of Armenia.

The issues of exploitation and disregard of children are also lacking.

The issues relating to the reforms in juvenile delinquency are also ignored.

Nothing is said about children in the chapter dealing with the issues of trafficking on page 79, nor anything about the fact that prostitution is not the only reason for trafficking (among these reasons is also dangerous and/or illegal/ unpaid work for women and children (under 18 years of age)).

STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT

The PRSP features much the issues dealing with the distribution and re-distribution of expenses, but gives little attention to the issues of production/profit/revenue in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). No distribution and/or re-distribution are appropriate without production. Consequently it is strongly recommended to start the PRSP with macro-economic and economic policies so that to make it possible to evaluate which of the social charges and to what extent are admissible (projected) in the framework of GDP. It means that they should be placed right after methodological chapters (1-3).

All the chapters (6, 6.1, 6.2 and 14) relating to the issues of labor should be combined in one chapter with separate subtitles (see the suggestion on the attachment).

The part referring to the issues of shadow economy must be moved to the chapter dealt with macro-economic issues.

Attachment 2 should/can be combined as follows: (1) project/arrangements; (2) main objectives; (3) consequence/output; (4) implementing entity(ies); (5) deadlines (see version of Interim PRSP).

The same conception is reiterated in chapter 7 and previous chapters (especially chapter 6). It is expedient that chapter 7 with heading -“Human rights” – be moved to the end of the part reading “Human development”.

PROCEDURAL ISSUES

Three target spheres have been emphasized during the discussions taken place at the meetings of the PRSP working groups, but only two of them were reflected in the document (regional goals and indigent/destitute groups). As to social and economic objectives (1. Equal distribution of revenues; 2. Emigration; 3. Human resources), they are simply lacking.

The direct factors mentioned in the 3rd chapter (page 28 of the Armenian version), which are believed to affect the growth of poverty prevalence, are rather the result of primary factors (economic, social, political and institutional) and principal factors, and should not be presented at the same level as the primary and principal factors.

SUGGESTIONS FOR AMMENDING/INCORPORATING/EMPHASAZING certain issues in the PAPER

Poverty relates to individuals and/or families. Proceeding from this concept the term “poverty of the state” (page 24, chapter 2.4) is not so much appropriate here and it should be reviewed and replaced (with such terms used in this chapter as “welfare level” or “decline in the collection of taxes” or “low expenses” for education, healthcare, pensions, and other social security spheres).

The PRSP and MGD are equipollent [interchangeable]. However, the paper does not explain what are the specific millennium goals declarations for Armenia; it is therefore that they should be added with indication of subparagraphs.

The table at the end of the first part should incorporate issues pertaining to pensions. And further it would be necessary to explain the unknown term of “implication factor” (besides, as far as it concerns teachers it would be advisable to use the term average “salary” instead of “pay rate”, and it is implied that pay rate should be expressed in drams on monthly basis).

In paragraphs 4.3 and 5.2 of the same table it would useful to have some data concerning average pensions and allowances, as well as the number of pensions and family allowances calculated for the future, and the average rate of such pensions/allowances determined.

The idea (…"increase of the needs satisfaction opportunities". This is mainly an issue of administration system and social policy.) being expressed in the first paragraph of the 33rd page is rather dangerous and does not support market relations at all. This goal-setting cannot and should not be directed at a greater dependence from the state. On the contrary, the idea of being independent from the state should be encouraged and developed, which means that people should be more independent from the state, social services and social administration. The state should create well-to-do conditions for people to live, and only in “exceptional cases” it can support some groups of people (for example, the destitute, the poor, the aged, big families, and other target groups). The following sentence concerning market conditions should be reviewed and changed, considering the market conditions (development of social-orientated market economy).

Creation of jobs is mostly a matter of economic (growth) policy and/or can be a matter of active policy in labor market, meanwhile it should be noted that active policy in labor market must be reflected in the improvement of inter-connectivity between the job-seekers and job vacancies. For this reason it is expedient to place this chapter at the end of the part pertaining to macro-economy and/or at the beginning of “Human development” (chapter 1). As far as it concerns the arrangements to be carried out for active policy in labor market, then the most successful of them should be taken into consideration, such as (1) providing subsidies to employers temporary employing unemployed people (for 3-6 months) and guarantying their further employment; (2) applying self-employment schemes for the unemployed; (3) working out and applying regular (re-)training schemes. It assumes that the budget allocated for the arrangements at unfavorable labor market policy should be re-distributed (from 95% of the budget for current labor market) towards arrangements directed at labor market active policy (bringing the latter to 30-40% of the provided budget of the labor market).

The 4th subject touched upon on the page 82 contains some unspecified information on VET, which should be minutely reflected in section “Education” since the VET system is mostly under responsibility of the RA Ministry of Education.

The chapter dealing with “Policy of employment growth” is too detailed and extensional for the draft or specific steps to be undertaken, meanwhile the ideas of the project are not everywhere so clearly defined. The attention in this chapter should attracted at the strategic problems and classify them as per their priorities.

The proposal on private pension insurance scheme included in Attachment 2, would be rather placed within the main text of the document.

It’d be better to replace the word ‘handicapped’ with the word ‘disabled’.

Restoration of libraries and historical heritage of literature, as well as preservation of the pearls of modern literature shall be regarded as measures to be undertaken at book-publishing and education spheres (which are among the most important strategic elements directed at prevention of poverty universally).

The food supply rate quoted in the document constitutes daily 2100 kilocalorie in conformity with the FAO definition (recently, according to the polling conducted in Armenia, food-supply index has reached 2400 kcal/d – see the footnote), however this section lacks any statistical data (pertaining to data as ‘who’, ‘when’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ are supplied with the food?) and any nutrition indices. Some statistical data on food supply can be found only on the page 25, however they are still insufficient/ as they are too general and should be presented on page 16 together with other information. There are no statistical data pertaining to poverty of women on page 21 (the statistical data available pertain only to children, but not women).

The project suggests producing a main and comprehensive document on social assistance to be rendered in Armenia and being reflected in the Law on Social Assistance [Aid]. It is also suggested to work out another document, i.e. a Law on State Allowances, which is not needed, as the majority of all state allowances are family allowances to resist poverty, the number of which, in case of successful operation of certain procedures, should be reduced in the future. More than this, the system of family allowances against poverty exists and is being successfully operated. There is no need to regulate this system for the proposed developments (for example, improvement of methodology for evaluation of insecurity of families). The issues pertaining to state allowances can be included in Social Assistance Law.

It is suggested to exclude from the law on customs houses:

the requirement approved by the customs authorities of the country (para. c, article 87 )to submit a declaration on the origin of goods aimed at determination of customs value;
the mandatory requirement, reading that the certificate of origin of goods to be submitted to the customs bodies shall contain the codes of goods (para.c, article 166) as an action of the following task (problem): “to facilitate customs clearance and complications arisen therefrom for to-be-carried-out transactions”, since the first requirement has been already excluded from the RA Law “On Customs Houses” and is incorporated in the RA Law “On Introducing Changes into the RA Law on Customs Houses” as of September 25, 2002; and the exclusion of the second requirement is not substantiated and can make room for ambiguity during executing customs formalities.

The urgency is felt in clarifying what exact amendments are to be introduced into the RA Law “On Customs Houses” to improve the legislation regulating the issues of antimonopoly, competition and antimonopoly struggle.

Here below are attached two chapters as they appear in original version: Chapter 12 “Nature Protection and Nature Usage” and Chapter 21 “Judicial System and Poverty Reduction” (Attachments 1 and 2).

SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIAL SECURITY

Social assistance. Encouraging is the fact that according to the PRSP the family allowance against poverty is reckoned as one of the main sources of social assistance. Addressed focusing of the system is also commendable. However, the PRSP should create a clear link between that purpose and the results of house-holding researches (a formula based on regression analysis). From the viewpoint of poverty reduction it is not expedient not to include the unemployed or other categories of people into the system of allowances, since the picture of poverty reveals that, for example, the unemployed are the poorest part of the population of Armenia. Every person shall have the right to apply, to be accounted and, after appropriate checks, to receive allowance as per his/her current status, and should not be preliminarily decided categories. The phrase “Direct purposefulness” shall be clarified.

The PRSP envisages significant growth in the rate of the allowance given to every family member (2000 drams will be provided in 2003 instead of 1500 drams presently provided). At the same time the Ministry of Finance wants to cut the total amount of allowances.

During a very short period of time “equal pensions can be provided to all groups of working people” (page 45), though in this case the insurance principle is not applied. The following refers to the improvement in pensions: “introducing a system of pensions, which is based only (1) on the increase in pensions proceeding from the total insurance payments for each year, but which also (2) takes into account the rate and amounts of payments made to the social insurance system during the whole period (page 45)”. The system of personal security number is specially aimed at prevention of such occurrences in the future.

Insurance from unemployment (Chapter 5.3). Here we can advise to adopt not only a special “Law on compulsory insurance against unemployment”, but also to replace “the Law on Population” with a new Law “On Fostering Employment” so that favorable and unfavorable labor market policy mechanisms can be regulated (see the example with Kirghizstan).

Insurance from temporary unemployment (Chapter 5.5) should be accordingly regulated together with compulsory medical insurance (Chapter 5.6).

Chapter 5.5 refers to insurance of “labour protection and health” and should be mostly financed by employers.

Social protection of inmates of children’s homes supposes not only financial assistance. The program “of the state assistance provided to the children’s care organizations and their inmates in the Republic of Armenia”, which was elaborated and incorporated into the 2003 state budget, includes 5 direction of social protection for the inmates of children’s homes. It is very important to reflect them into the PRSP.

Reforms in the pension system should be undertaken in two successive phases: administrative reforms of the current system, and which is more lengthy, incorporation of a new private system, which would be fully based on capitalization of pension payments made to private funds. In case with the second option a multichoice pension scheme can be applied, which would enable impartial differentiation of pensions’ rates as per contribution made by each individual.

ECONOMY

The chapters pertaining to strategies in stabilization of macro-economy express more wishes rather than represent results of scientific research. Consequently, they present options for scenarios in a form of a model and make some assumptions. Here it is believed that they should include the description of external environment affecting the economy, as well as the analysis of possible external and internal pressure during the implementation of the program. Taking into account the possible pressures, it would be necessary to present three options of scenarios (well grounded, optimistic and pessimistic) instead of one. 8.2% of average economic growth per annum can be expected in the merely optimistic scenario.

Projection for the growth in the exported commodities (5.4%) for the current year is greatly underestimated, since the factual growth for the first 8 months already was 38.1%. The same situation is with the calculations of the external debt for 2001-2002: the state guaranties and the credits provided by the IMF to the RA Central Bank should be reflected in the total amounts.

Aggregated/lump sum fiscal projections (the amounts of incomes/revenues, expenses, the GDP growth level, and inflation) for 2003 and 2003-2005 are not consistent with 2003 draft budget and 2003-2005 Medium Term Expenditures Framework (MTEF). It is of a great importance to make the income/revenue collection procedure more effective and reduce the current irregularity in incomes/revenues until a well-balanced interconnection is guaranteed.

Tax collection projections. These projections within the structure of GDP grow at a rate of 0.4% per annum. It is unclear which part of this 0.4% rate will be generated as a result of reduction of shadow economy, and which part – on account of economic growth. Analysis showed that the GDP growth up to 0.3% could be guaranteed by more effective collection of taxes.

A number of measures/actions incorporated in Attachment 2 were not reflected in the main text of the document (for example, mineral resources, dangerous wastes).

The problems of marketing and exports are among the invisible reasons of the low development level of agriculture. However this problem has not been sufficiently detailed in the document.

Increase in the agricultural production and particularly the productivity of agricultural works would require contributions to knowledge of rural population to be enlarged. It would obviously require implementation of programs directed at effective enlargement of knowledge, provision of market information, and training.

The most part of Chapter 15 and 16 reverts to shadow economy, the issues of distribution and re-distribution, not so much to investments (especially to capital investments) and savings as a driving force of economy growth. More than this, “…the state should reduce the financing the investment projects to the benefit of financing directed at social and human capital development projects (page 91)”. This idea should be carefully reviewed so that it could not obstruct the currently successfully functioning field of macro-economy. “We agree that social policy, especially the policy dealing with the poor and paupers, should be developed, but it should not be done at the account of capital investments”. (See a Report of UNDP mission led by Keith Griffin on “Growth, Inequality and Poverty in Armenia”, Yerevan, August, 2002).

It should be noted that Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) should be closed at a medium or long time scope, as soon as other alternative energy backups are found for this source of energy.

Armenia witnesses a surplus of labour force more in small and medium towns, and this can be discussed in chapter 14. The practice of other countries shows that provision of grants for “unemployed private entrepreneurs” could be hardly efficient until such grants are thoroughly projected and controlled, which can entail more expenses. Though the “Entrepreneurship Teaching Program” is very commendable, but would require further discussions and development.

LEGISLATION/ JUDICIAL AND LEGAL SYSTEM

“In case with the president’s and the government’s apparatus, and functions of ministries, as well as formation of legislative bases and mechanisms ”, - this seems to be a constitutional primary provision, which is clearly regulated by the applicable Constitution. Any allocation of functions should be executed through introduction of modifications to the current Constitution. The given issue should be discussed within the framework of the offered present package of changes/modifications to the Constitution, which will be submitted on the referendum in May 2003.

The definitions and decisions of judicial system in a context of poverty reduction are submitted in a very general way. There is no precise strategy or time schedule, which would enable to determine, how and when the specified measures should be executed. Three-month term for the creation of independent judicial system can seem to be naivety, and it is not understandable, what problems have arisen in a reality before the judicial system, which are subject to the resolution? The proposal to work out a law on the formation of courts, for example, “so that the term for replacing court chairman is determined at maximum 2 terms, each one for 5 years”, is submitted in unclear way, poorly grounded and, seems more reducing, rather than enhancing independence of judicial system. According to the current legislation judges are appointed termlessly, which is believed to promote towards creation of guarantees of independent thinking and judgment.

The increase in the number of courts will apparently reduce the transport charges with the poor, however not necessarily it will help them to be better served there. Among the core problems is the assistance to insecure layers of population in obtaining qualitative legal aid. Though in the country there are a number of law establishments, which provide free-of-charge and inexpensive "legal advice", however a small number of people could afford to pay for legal protection at the courts.

Thus, they can only take their own "representative" to the court to protect the their rights, and it can take place only if civil cases are considered. So, it is necessary to introduce changes to the Civil Code and related laws to make the legal help free-of-charge and accessible for the poor.

HEALTHCARE

After completing the calculation of the expenses for the proposed projects it would be necessary to determine the priorities: presently the strategy extends from securing the accessibility of primary services to enhancing the role of physical training. Two of the parameters for determining the prevailing priorities can be possible impact on the poor (as for example, healthy modes of life would be followed, first of all, by people who are not poor) and the reality, which can be ensured based on human and financial resources.

It would be required to reflect the issue of providing regular vaccination, particularly reserving a special article in the state budget for vaccination and acquisition of medical items. This issue was thoroughly discussed and coordinated with the RA Ministry of Health as an undertaking for responsibility for vaccination gradually assumed by the government, which goes in accord with GAVI requirements (page 63, para. 5).

Increase in financing of primary healthcare seems extremely pretentious. Hospitals network is insufficiently financed, and even under implementation of overall optimization the financing would be nevertheless insufficient to cover the general needs. Apparently, it would be more reasonable to set forth lower objectives, let’s say 40%.

The strategy suggests “hospitals for the poor” as a means of accessibility to hospital services chosen by the poor themselves. This approach has not yet been applied in any country of the region and is fraught with serious problems (see the comments of the World Bank).

EDUCATION

The issues of human rights, education, healthcare and environment have been discussed, however nothing has said about creation of working places, nor comparable advantages of Armenia regarding the above are anywhere presented. The paper/document believes that assistance to small and very small (micro) enterprises and professional training might be useful (page 79-85). The analysis points out the necessity in elaborating new management policy, and that the RA Ministry of Education and Science should correlate education with labor market requirements. No attempt in the report is seen to be done to enter the global competition market.

The PRSP includes neither specific goals pertaining to professional training and re-training (VET) sector, nor measures/programs to be undertaken (budgetary instruction for VET are given at the end of the chapter dealing with education issues (page 59)).

We believe that more attention should be given to VET, which is undoubtedly the most important sphere of education combating poverty. VET system in Armenia is undergoing acute crisis and needs speedy assistance. The main purpose is to bring the professional education to the conformity of needs in labor market and works requirements, and doing so to assist in creating working places.

According to subjects described on pages 58 and 16 the salary of teachers “must be brought to the average salary level of the country”. Even if the ratio between pupils and teachers becomes significantly higher than it is now, it still remains unclear, whether the suggested increased rate of the teachers’ salary is feasible and how it can be realized in the conditions of shortage of budgetary allocations to education (from the viewpoint of determining the expenditures).

The monitoring indicators presented in Attachment 2 are mostly limited to the indicators of children’s involvement at schools and completion of different education levels, as well as correlation between the number pupils and teachers. Since certain improvement in the teaching/studying quality is also the most important objective, then it would be better to introduce standard test marks too. In any case, the indicators of children’s involvement mentioned at schools texts considerably differ from the figures presented in Attachment 2 and the World Bank’s report on the study of state spendings.

The PRSP recommends increasing the teachers’ salary up to the doubled average rate. Before the PRSP is finally worked out and evaluated, we believe that this point should be carefully reviewed, and probably some modest starting provision could be established.

REFUGEES

The government decisions pertaining to refugees and forcible re-settled out-migrants are incorporated as future programs without giving any ideas and perspectives on the core problems.

The number of out-migrants, referred in the paper, is 72000, which are stale data of the RA Migration Department. This number is used groundlessnessly, though the research on out-migrants has not yet been completed.

The third sentence in para. 4.5.1 is presented in rather distorted way: “132 from 170 inhabited areas were ruined, the houses, roads, drinkable water supplying networks became obsolete…”. We think that the presented picture is not true… the inhabited areas are really in a bad condition, however the initial results of the research on out-migrants reveal that the reason of it lies not in the direct operations of enemies, but the economic breakdown of local objects serving before a source of income (such as collective farms, factories, etc.), which is INDIRECT consequence of the war conflict.

The para. 4.5.1 says that “approximately 40 of them /out-migrants/… returned…”. This figure approximately corresponds to the figure of 39 000 of those out-migrants who need assistance to return to their settlements. This figure is given later in the same paragraph (though it means that 60% of 72000, which constitutes 43000 instead of 39000). The figures are approximate, however, taking into account the out-dated information, there are no other evidence... In all cases these are nothing but roughly calculated figures.

GENDER ISSUES

It is not only necessary, but also important to include objective 3 “Promoting equality between genders and making women stronger” (in the table on page 30 of the PRSP) so that the PRSP be concordant with the MGD.

The set-forth goals and indicators are as follows:
Goal: “to eliminate the existing equality between genders at the level of elementary and secondary education, desirably before 2005; and in other educational levels – no later than 2015”;
Indicators: - proportion in the number of girls and boys at the level of elementary, secondary and professional-higher education;
a ratio of 15-24-years-old literate females to literate males;
share of women in the wage-work in non-agricultural sector;
share of women involved in the parliament of the country.

Moreover, it should be noted that there are no data on genders. Such data are needed to analyze correctly the existing reality.

There are other indicators that might be useful from the MGD for objective 3 and which will be adjusted to the conditions of Armenia. These indicators are:
the percentage of women taking positions, which entitle them to make decisions in the government;
the percentage of women taking positions, which entitle them to make decisions within local governing bodies;
the existing difference in salaries of women and men;
the percentage of women with higher education;
the ratio of children in kindergartens and infant schools under 5 years of age to the total number of children of the same age group;
business ownership according to the owners’ gender and scale of business.

PROVISION OF FINANCING NEEDED FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF PRSP

The government of Armenia defines its state budget as a primary source for the financing of the PRSP. Besides, some other means will be attracted from external sources and Armenian Diaspora (page 136). The PRSP projects 700 million US dollars financing from donor organizations. It is worth mentioning that though the PRSP will serve s a basis for further donor assistance, however it does not imply any growth in donors’ assistance. Donors’ assistance to Armenia per capita is now considered to be the greatest in the world, and it is very unlikely that it would considerably grow in the future.

INDICATORS

The item 13 in the table with the PRSP indicators and goals (page 30) reading “share of tax revenues and duties (%) of the unified budget in the GDP” indicates that this percentage was 17,8 in 2001, and in 2003 it should reach 18,7%, which does not correspond to the current plan foreseeing increase from 15-15,5% to 16-16,5% during three-year period.

The initial results of 2001-population census were not taken into account while calculating the indicators per capita as brought in table 5 (according to the footnote). However, it seems that census was taken into account, as it is seen in the table from the indicators of high-income growth per capita in previous year. Methodologically it would be better re-estimate the population number for previous years to ensure time sequence. Besides, in the same subsection, the state spendings for 2000 should have been 25,5% of GDP instead of 33%.

In table 1 it should be taken into consideration that 1996 research is methodologically incomparable with the researches conducted in 1998/99 and 2001.

While discussing the poverty limits it would be useful to incorporate an explanation why the current expenditures and not consumption per capita were used as welfare indicator.

The 2001 indicators must be verified in comparison with the final results, which can reveal more aggravated levels of poverty.

The poverty eradication goal set forth in section 3.3 is not realistic. Even if it were realistic, all the same it does not correspond to the projected income distribution 0,48 GINI coefficient.

Though the projected GINI coefficient is strictly limited, in 2001 the poverty compared with 54,7% in 1996 declined to 50,9%, at the same time GINI coefficient declined almost by 12,5.

It is unclear why the minimum food consumption per capita should be increased to 2 400 k/cal. In all cases, it is preferable to apply monetary marginal indicators in terms of poverty, rather than those expressed in calories. Since both of them are determined based on the factual housekeeping expenses, it is not appropriate to keep to the same level (24,5 USD monthly) envisaged for the whole period of time. It should have risen together with the improvement foreseen in the structure.

There are not any poverty monitoring indicators both for poverty with compassionate allowance or without it.

MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING

The official/non-official business relations are already established, though no clear description is given as to what the government wishes and needs to acquire from such partnership. The indicators and goals are unclear. The goals, sub-goals and indicators (in this case the logical scheme format will be the simplest) should be submitted in writing, so that the inter-sectoral approach to poverty reduction can be clearly comprehended, which is not yet clear from this document.

Emphasis on the PRSP implementation structure. The status of working group in charge of the PRSP implementation is extremely weak and unsatisfactory. There is an urgent need in regular functioning PRSP Implementation Office, which should be supplied with qualitative staff, well-prepared and appropriately furnished, the functions, problems and goals of which should be engaged in a thoroughly substantiated way. This requirement becomes more imperative considering the fact that donor organizations are called to contribute more than 40% of the approximately evaluated estimate for the arrangements proposed by the PRSP (see page 135).

Attachment 2 (management) results from the document itself. The discrepancy in information presented at the end of this Attachment and the document are unclear.

Since the PRSP management scheme incorporates numerous state management departments and linear ministries, then it is extremely important that each of them could clearly realize its role and responsibility (duties). They should be given appropriate authorization to take relevant decisions at the possible soonest timing.

The strategy will not be a success at a time of implementing the envisaged numerous state, social and economic policies and projects, unless serious systematization is included between the ministries and agencies. Working groups are essential, however they are not always efficient. It is important to ensure that the RA government bodies and donors are capable to function without political interference from above or possibly with less number of such interventions.

PARTICIPATORY PROCESS

The discussion, dedicated to the issue how to make various legal acts concerning citizens more accessible for them, is misleading. Armenia does not need any specific law on society’s participation in the PRSP. At the same time, the importance in the adoption of the act on information freedom is not discussed at all, which is believed to be more essential for civil society in terms of information accessibility.

As far as it concerns the election rights, the report clearly stresses on the importance of enlarging the process of educating voters. However the rest of the discussions are inappropriate. Ethical norms of behavior are not among the fundamentals: they relate to corruption and must be indicated in that section. We do not agree with the suggestion on “mobile ballot-boxes”. The existence of mobile ballot-boxes is considerably increases the possibility of fraudulence and cheating, thus abetting the violation of election rights of the poor, rather than promoting to their improvement. In addition, the report disregards and leaves uncovered other numerous spheres where election rights of voters were violated during previous elections. The authors should review the reports of international and local observers’ mission and incorporate the recommendations (suggestions) given in the reports.

 

World trade Organization	RESTRICTED
	22 November 2002
	(02-6309)
Working Party on the Accession of Armenia	Original:  English

REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY
ON THE ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA

I. Introduction
1. At its meeting on 17 December 1993, the Council of Representatives established a Working Party to examine the application of the Government of Armenia to accede to the General Agreement on Tariffs and trade (GATT 1947) under Article XXXIII, and to submit to the Council recommendations which might include a draft Protocol of Accession. In a communication dated 31 January 1995 (WT/L/25), the Government of Armenia applied for accession to the Agreement Establishing the World trade Organization (WTO) pursuant to Article XII of the WTO Agreement. Following Armenia's application and having regard to the Decision adopted by the General Council on 31 January 1995 (WT/GC/M/1), the Working Party on the Accession of Armenia to the GATT 1947 was transformed into a WTO Accession Working Party. The terms of reference of the Working Party were also contained in document WT/L/25.

2. The Working Party met on 24 January and 23-24 September 1996, 14 May 1997, 24 June 1999 and 21 November 2002 under the Chairmanship of H.E. Mr. D. Kenyon (Australia).

Information
3. The Working Party had before it, to serve as a basis for its discussions, a Memorandum on the Foreign TRade Regime of Armenia (WT/ACC/ARM/1), and the questions submitted by Members on the Armenian foreign trade regime together with the replies of the Armenian authorities thereto (WT/ACC/ARM/2 and Corr.1; WT/ACC/ARM/5; and WT/ACC/ARM/8). In addition the representative of Armenian made available to the Working Party the following material:
- The Customs Code of the Republic of Armenia of 1 January 2001;
- Decree of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 40 of 13 February 1993, "Additional Measures on State Regulation of International Economic Activities";
- Resolution No. 31 of 21 February 1995, "On Regulation Regarding the Establishment, Registration, Licence and Suspension of Activities of Banks and Their Branches and Agencies and Those of Foreign Banks Operating in the Republic of Armenia”
- Law on Amendments and Additions to the Republic of Armenia Law on the "Value-Added Tax" of 10 December 1994;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia on Property Tax;
- Law on Making Amendments in the Republic of Armenia Law on Excise Tax of 30 November 1994;
- Law on Pledge Collateral;
- Law on Bankruptcy of Enterprises and Individual Entrepreneurs of 15 June 1995;
- Law on Making Amendments in the Republic of Armenia Law on Corporation Tax of 19 December 1994;
- Law on Standardization of 9 December 1999;
- Law on Conformity Assessment of 9 December 1999;
- Law on Patents of 21 August 1993;
- Law on Income Tax of 8 February 1995;
- Law on Land Tax of 27 April 1994;
- Law on State Agrarian Inspections;
- Statute of the Peasant and Collective Peasant Farms of 22 January 1991;
- The Land Code of 29 January 1991;
- Supreme Council Resolution on the Maximum Sizes of the Land Lots in Property of the Peasant and Peasant Collective Farms;
- Resolution No. 581 of 16 December 1994, “On Corroboration of the Temporary Regulations for Auditing Activities in the Republic of Armenia”;
- Government Decision of 17 January 1995, "On the Procedure of Granting Licenses for Importation and Exportation of Goods (Works, Services) in the Republic of Armenia";
- Government Resolution No. 67 of 8 February 1995, "On the State Procurement Order of 1995 of the Republic of Armenia";
- Government Resolution No. 4 of 19 August 1995, "On Confirmation of the Temporary Regulations for trademarks and Service Marks";
- Government Resolution No. 606 of 29 December 1994, "On Rates of the Excise Tax";
- Government Resolution No. 88 of 23 February 1994, "On the Order of Submitting Statistical Reports Regarding the Importation and Exportation of Services in the Republic of Armenia";
- Council of Ministers Resolution No. 161 of 5 March 1991, "On the Order of Exercising Diverse Types of Economic Activities on the Territory of the Republic of Armenia";
- Decree of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 124 of 29 December 1995 On Non Tariff Regulation of the Commodities (Operations, Services) Import and Export in the Republic of Armenia;
- Statement of the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia on Joining to Article VIII of the IMF Agreement.;
- The Law of the Republic of Armenia of 30 June 1996, "On Central Bank of Armenia";
- The Law of the Republic of Armenia of 30 June 1996, "On Banks and Banking";
- The Law of the Republic of Armenia of 10 June 1996, "On Bankruptcy of Banks";
- Decree of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 124 of 29 December 1995, "On Non Tariff Regulation of the Commodities (Operations, Services) Import and Export in the Republic of Armenia";
- Amendments to the Law, "On Privatization and Denationalization of State Owned Enterprises and Unfinished Construction Sites";
- List 2 of the Resolution of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 415 of 1995,"On types of Activities that are Subject to Licensing in the Territory of the Republic of Armenia";
- Statute of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Armenia of 20 June 1996, "On Issuing Inferences on Minimal Pricing of Exports of Products from Ferrous and Non ferrous Metals not Produced in Armenia, as well as their Scrap";
- Statute of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia of 20 June 1996, "On Issuing Inferences on Import and Export of Pharmaceuticals into and from the Republic of Armenia";
- Statute of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Armenia of 20 June 1996, "On Issuing Inferences on Export of Wild Animals and Plants Included in the Red Book (Endangered Species Listing) of the Republic of Armenia";
- Statute of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Armenia of 20 June 1996 On Issuing Inferences on Import of Plant Protection Agents into the Republic of Armenia.
- Decree of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia, "On Regulation of Pharmaceutical Activity and Ensuring the Quality of Drugs and Medical Facilities";
- Programme of the Government of the Republic of Armenia, "On Privatization of State Enterprises and Unfinished Construction sites of the Republic of Armenia for 1996 1997"; and
- Amendment of 1 May 1996 to Annex N 1 to Decree of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 615 of 6 December 1993, "On Determining the Customs Duties";
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Customs Duties" of 30 December 1998;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Customs User Fees of 30 December 1998;
- Decree of the Government of Armenia "To Define the Rules for Determining the Country of Origin of Goods";
- Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia of 5 May 1998;
- Civil Procedure Code of 20 January 1998;
- Criminal Procedure Code of 20 January 1998;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On trade Names" of 12 May 1997;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods";
- Patent Law of 21 August 1993;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Copyright and Neighbouring Rights" of 27 May 1996;
- Draft Law of the Republic of Armenia "Protection of Secret Information";
- Draft Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Protection of Selection Achievements";
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Legal Protection of Topographies of Integrated Circuits" of 3 February 1998;
- Draft Proposals on the Amendments in the Armenian Law on Patents Dealing with the Provisions of the WTO Component Agreement trIPS;
- Regulation "On Importation of Goods Subject to Certification in the Republic of Armenia into the Customs Territory of the Republic of Armenia" of 16 January 1998;
- Decree No. 15 of the Government of the Republic of Armenia "On Compulsory Certification of Goods and Services in the Republic of Armenia" of 16 January 1998;
- Regulation "On Application of Certificate of Compliance when Realising and Advertising (Rendering Services) the Certified Goods Subject to Compulsory Certification in the Republic of Armenia" of 16 January 1998;
- Regulation "On Fees for the Compulsory Certification in the Republic of Armenia" of 16 January 1998;
- Decree No. 171 of the Republic of Armenia "On Establishment of Agrarian Regulations" of 11 March 1998;
- List of Toxic and Biological Means Permitted for the Use in the Republic of Armenia to Struggle Against Pests, Diseases and Weeds of Agricultural Cultivated Plants, Forestry and Ornamental Plants;
- List of Quarantine Pests, Diseases of Plants and Weeds for the Republic of Armenia;
- List of Quarantine Plants, Food, Seeds and Seedlings of Plant Origin for Quarantine Protection Purposes;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Agrarian State Inspections" of 15 May 1996;
- Regulation "On Cooperation Between the Customs Authorities, Border Veterinary Inspection Stations and State Plant Quarantine Services of the Republic of Armenia" of 27 January 1998;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine" of 20 March 2000;
- Law of the Republic of Armenia "On Veterinary" of 26 October 1999;
- Government Decree No. 26 of the Republic of Armenia "On the Measures to Ensure the Implementation of the Separate Articles of the Laws of the Republic of Armenia on "Standardization and Certification" and the "Uniformity of Measures" of 20 January 1998;
- Decree of the Government of Armenia No. 26 "Procedure on the Implementation of State Metrology Control Over the Quantity of Withdrawn Commodities" 20 January 1998;
- Government Decree No. 29 of 11 January 2000 on Preparation, Adoption and Application of Technical Regulations;
- Law on Taxes, adopted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, on 14 April 1997;
- Law on Excise Tax effective 1 August 2000;
- Law on Simplified Tax effective 5 June 2000;
- Government Decree No. 913 of 31 December 2000;
- Law on Amendment to the Customs Code of the Republic of Armenia of 26 December 2000;
- Draft Law on Land Tax;
- Draft Law on Antidumping and Countervailing Measures;
- Draft Law on State Registration of Legal Persons;
- Law on Medicines;
- Law on Licensing (May 30, 2001);
- Law on State Registration of Legal Entities (April 26, 2001);
- Resolution 239 of 12 May 2000, with amendments
- Government Resolution 581 of 20 September 2000;
- Law on Making Amendments and Additions to the Customs Code;
- Law on Making Changes and Amendments in the "Criminal Code" of the Republic of Armenia;
- Law on Making Changes and Amendments in the Law of the Republic of Armenia on "Copyright and Neighbouring Rights";
- Law on Making Amendments in the Law of the Republic of Armenia on "Value Added Tax"; and
- Law on Making Amendments in the Law of the Republic of Armenia on "Excise Tax".

Introductory statements
4. In an introductory statement, the representative of Armenia said that since declaring independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, Armenia had vigorously pursued free market reforms within a democratic framework, notwithstanding acute political and economic difficulties. Economic decline had been reflected in sharp reductions in output, falling incomes, reduced trade flows, severe shortages of energy, and scarcity of food and other consumer goods. Despite this adversity, the Government had persevered with the economic reform programme, placing particular emphasis on liberalization, stabilization, and economic restructuring. Most agricultural land was privatized shortly after independence and privatization in other sectors was moving ahead. Demonopolization and deregulation had removed barriers to private sector participation in all but a few areas of economic activity. Price controls were only applied to a limited number of essential goods and services, and were being phased out. Foreign investment was encouraged.

5. He further added that on the macroeconomic side, stabilization policy was a government priority, given the challenge of the difficult budgetary position, combined with the need to contain inflationary pressures and maintain exchange rate stability. The Government had successfully brought monthly inflation down to a single digit level, from the triple digit levels prevailing at the end of 1993. By the end of 1997 the annual inflation was 21.9 per cent, and annual inflation for 1998 2.9 per cent, for year 1999 6 per cent, for year 2000 0.8 per cent and for year 2001 2.9 per cent. The Government was strongly committed to securing a sound and stable macroeconomic framework for future economic growth and development. Fuller integration into the world economy, and continuing diversification of Armenia's economic relations with other countries, were central planks of the Government's reform efforts. The Government of Armenia believed that these objectives could only be attained through open trade policies that emphasized specialization on the basis of international comparative advantage. It was for this reason that the Government of Armenia attached priority to its accession to the World trade Organization, and wished to complete negotiations for membership at the earliest opportunity.

6. The Working Party welcomed Armenia's application for accession to the Agreement Establishing the WTO. Several members of the Working Party acknowledged that Armenia had undergone a rapid process concerning reform and trade liberalization which, notwithstanding internal and external difficulties, appeared to be succeeding in permitting economic growth. These members expressed support for Armenia's integration into the multilateral trading system and indicated their readiness to pursue the negotiations in earnest.

II. ECONOMY, ECONOMIC POLICIES AND FOREIGN TRADE
- Foreign exchange and payments

7. In response to questions from members of the Working Party concerning Armenia’s foreign exchange reserves and the convertibility of the Dram, the representative of Armenia stated that gross official reserves made up US$ 330 million by the end of 2000 and covered about 4 months of imports. Gross official reserves had risen from 0.7 months of import cover in 1994 to 2.3 months in 1996, 2.7 months in 1997 and 3 months in 1998. On 29 May 1997, Armenia accepted the obligations of Article VIII of the International Monetary Fund's Agreement, Sections 2, 3 and 4, and has committed to refrain from imposing restrictions on the making of payments and transfers for current international transactions, and from engaging in discriminatory currency arrangements or multiple currency practices without IMF approval. According to Resolution No. 141 "On Foreign Exchange Regulation and Administration of Control", there were no restrictions on current account operations. After being licensed by the Central Bank natural persons and legal entities were allowed to act as foreign exchange dealers. The Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) determined the daily exchange rate as a midpoint of the previous day’s buying and selling operations in foreign exchange market (the participants of foreign exchange market are those dealing with over-the-counter market, stock exchanges, foreign exchange bureaus, etc.). Foreign exchange dealers (including banks) were free to establish their own exchange rates for transactions. Non-resident banks could be authorized to participate in the domestic foreign exchange market on conditions equal to those set for resident banks. Legal entities and natural persons, residents and non-residents of Armenia could open and hold their current accounts in foreign banks without any restrictions. The authorities indicated that residents of Armenia could undertake movement of capital without any restrictions unless otherwise specified by CBA and that non-residents could undertake the movement of capital according to the "Law on Foreign Investments" of the Republic of Armenia. All bilateral clearing arrangements based on barter had been eliminated.

- Income Tax
8. The representative of Armenia stated that according to the Law on Income Tax, which entered into force on 1 January 1998, personal income tax was determined on the basis of the amount of the taxpayer’s income earned during the reporting period. In determining the taxable income the following deductions could be made from a gross income: deductible income, personal deductions, and expenses. Gross income was deducted by Dram 20,000 for each month during which an income was earned. The income tax rates were as follows:

Monthly taxable income	Amount of income tax
Less than Dram 80,000	10 per cent of taxable income
More than Dram 80,000	Dram 8,000 added to 20 per cent of total income exceeding Dram 80,000

 

Annual taxable income	Amount of income tax
Less than Dram 960,000	10 per cent of taxable income
More than Dram 960,000	Dram 96,000 added to 20 per cent of total  income exceeding Dram 960,000

He further added that the rate of income tax for income received from royalties, payments of interest and property rent was 10 per cent. The following categories of receipts were exempt income for tax considerations: social security allowances under Armenian legislation, lump-sum allowances to families of military servicemen killed or handicapped, alimony payments, earnings of individuals for donations of blood and pectoral milk or for other type of donor activities, as well as income from agricultural activities.

- Land Tax
9. The representative of Armenia stated, that a land tax was imposed on private landowners and users of State owned land. The land tax was calculated as an annual fixed charge for a land plot unit. For agricultural land the land tax rate was set at 15 per cent of calculated net income determined by the estimated fiscal value of the land, and for the land for non-agricultural usage the land tax rate was established at 1 per cent of the estimated fiscal l value of the land (0.5 per cent if outside residential area). In order to promote the development of plant-raising, newly established and immature orchards and vineyards were exempted from payment of land tax. In the event of adverse agricultural circumstances, the Government, with the consent of the National Assembly of Armenia, could grant certain tax exemptions to some taxpayers or to groups of taxpayers. In a new Draft of the Law on Land Tax, which was submitted to the National Assembly of Armenia, the property character of the tax was accentuated, and tax calculation methods were simplified. In particular, for both agricultural and non-agricultural land plots the amount of tax would be calculated based on their value, and that value would be determined according to the same Law.

- Profit Tax
10. The representative of Armenia stated that the new Law on Profit Tax, which entered into force on 1 January 1998, introduced a profit tax on residents and non-residents. For residents the profit tax was charged on taxable profit earned in Armenia and abroad. For non-residents the profit tax was charged on taxable profit earned from Armenian sources. For residents the amount of profit tax charged on taxable profit was determined at a rated of 20 per cent. The following types of revenues were included in Armenian taxable income of non-residents from Armenian sources:
- income derived from entrepreneurial activities within the Republic of Armenia;
- passive income earned by non-residents from residents or non-residents; and
- other income obtained by non-residents within the Republic of Armenia.
The tax charged on income obtained by non-residents from the Armenian sources was levied according to the following rates:

Type of Income:	Profit tax rate
Insurance offsets received as a result of insurance; payments received for reinsurance, incomes received from shipment (freight)	5 per cent
Dividends, Royalties; income received from property rent; property value increment and other passive income (except income received from shipment (freight)), as well as other income received from Armenian sources, Interest	10 per cent

Taxpayers engaged in the production of agricultural products were exempted from the profit tax payments. Since 1 January 1998, Armenian resident statutory funds with foreign investments of greater than 500 million Drams had been permitted to reduce their profit tax as follows:

Year when the established investment benchmark in the statutory fund of a resident enterprises would be fulfilled	Proportion of profit tax reductions from the tax liability of the resident enterprise with foreign investment, allowed for the respective years
	100 per cent	50 per cent
1998	1999 and 2000	2001-2008 inclusive
1999	2000 and 2001	2002-2009 inclusive
2000	2001 and 2002	2003-2008 inclusive
2001	2002 and 2003	2004-2007 inclusive
2002	2003 and 2004	2005-2006 inclusive
2003	2004 and 2005
2004	2005 and 2006
2005	2006 and 2007
2006	2007 and 2008
2007	2008 and 2009

If the taxpayer’s ceased operations during the period of tax reduction, the amount of the profit tax would be calculated at the full rate for the entire period of economic activity.

- Simplified tax
11. The representative of Armenia said that according to the Law on Simplified Tax, which entered into force on 5 June 2000, simplified tax replaced VAT and Profit Tax or Income Tax (as applicable) for entrepreneurial activities. All entrepreneurs, whether Armenian or foreign in origin were subjected equally to the tax. For legal persons simplified tax substituted for VAT and Profit Tax. For individual entrepreneurs simplified tax substituted for VAT and Income Tax. Tax privileges for VAT and Profit or Income Tax had been terminated for taxpayers covered by simplified tax. All legal persons and individual entrepreneurs were liable to simplified tax if during the previous reporting year the total amount of turnover of goods supplied and services rendered had not exceeded AMD 30 million (exclusive of VAT). trade and public catering activities carried out in shops and counters (retail shops, market stall vendors, restaurants, snack bars and the like) are not subject to the tax threshold, and are therefore liable to simplified tax notwithstanding the total annual amount of turnover. He further noted that the legal persons and individual entrepreneurs to whom simplified tax applied in 2001 amounted to 0.8 per cent of GDP. The following taxpayers were not subject to simplified tax:
- Producers of goods subject to excise tax;
- Taxpayers with outstanding liabilities (including fines and penalties envisaged by Tax legislation) exceeding 100 thousand Drams as at 1 January of the relevant year;
- Loan and insurance companies, investment funds, specialized parties of stock market, organizers of casinos, cash winning games or lotteries, persons carrying out audits or consulting services, etc.;
- Presumptive taxpayers within the definition of the law "On Presumptive Payments";
- Taxpayers holding any remaining goods imported under a "for free circulation" customs regime, (non VAT taxable at the moment of import and not sold within the previous year) the value of which exceeded 1 million Drams;
- Those entities which ceased to be considered as that prior to 31 December inclusive of that year;
- Producers of agricultural products.
He further added that the simplified tax base was the sale turnover of goods supplied and services of taxpayers during the reporting quarter
For trading activities other than sales by shops and counters, the tax was determined on sales turnover at the following rates:
- 8 per cent for the amount under AMD 30 million;
- 13 per cent for the amount over AMD 30 million.
The tax rate for income from sales by shops and counters was at the following rates:
a) For the amount up to 30 million Drams – 5 per cent;
b) For the amount exceeding 30 million Drams – 7 per cent.
For the purpose of the simplified tax expression trade covered the activities carried out in shops and counters without any distinction between domestic or imported goods.

- Property tax
12. The representative of Armenia stated that the property tax was a direct tax levied on all buildings and vehicles belonging to natural and legal entities. The calculation of the tax levied on buildings was based on their value (determined pursuant to the Law on Property Tax). Taxation of vehicles was determined based on the power output of its engine and age of the vehicle. Buildings were revalued every three years. If the value of a residential building was less than 3 million Dram, it was exempted from property tax. If a residential buildings had a value above 3 million Dram, the tax rates were set according to a scale, varying between 0.1 0.8 per cent.

13. The representative of Armenia stated that in accordance with the Law on Property Tax, the property tax levied on buildings for public and production usage was established at 0.6 per cent of their value.
The property tax for motor transport vehicles was levied according to the following annual rates:
For passenger vehicles with up to ten seats: if the tax base (engine power is):
- less than 120 horsepower/88 kilowatts: 200 Drams per horsepower/ 272 Drams per kilowatt;
- 120-250 horsepower/88-184kilowatts: then 300 Drams for each horsepower or 408 Drams for each kilowatt.
For passenger vehicles with over ten seats and trucks: if the tax base (engine power) is:
- less than 200 horsepower/147kilowatts: 100 Drams for each horsepower/136 Drams per kilowatt;
- Over 200 horsepower/147kilowatts: 200 Drams per horsepower/ 272 Drams per kilowatt.

- State ownership and privatization
14. In response to requests for information concerning the privatization of State owned assets, the representative of Armenia stated that the process of privatization had started in Armenia in 1991, when Government Decision No. 335 had permitted small enterprises in the sphere of public utilities, catering, trade and other services to be privatized. The Law on Privatization and Denationalization of Enterprises and Unfinished Construction Sites, adopted in 1992, was the legal basis for all subsequent privatization. He further added that by 1 January 2002 the Government of Armenia had adopted 2,067 decrees concerning the privatization of companies (including 170 decrees on dissolution of enterprises). The national Assembly of the Republic of Armenia had adopted Laws on Armenia's Privatization Program.

15. The representative of Armenia noted that five privatization programs adopted by the National Assembly had been undertaken since the beginning of the privatization process in Armenia. The first two privatization programs were covered the years (1994 and 1995 respectively. They were followed by the adoption of the 1996-1997 and 1998-2000 privatization programs. Those privatization programs included most companies in the fields of industry, agriculture and transport as well as all "small enterprises" (in the sphere of public utilities, catering, trade and other services) and unfinished construction sites. The current Privatization Program of State Assets for the for the period 2001-2003, was adopted by the National Assembly on 27 July 2001. It incorporated all enterprises intended to have been privatised under earlier programs. He further noted that foreign legal and natural persons were free to participate in the privatization of any state assets.

16. In response to further requests for information the representative of Armenia noted that up to 1 January 2002 1,643 medium and large enterprises had been privatised. Of those 1,081 had been privatised through the open subscription of shares, 62 through share auctions, 134 employee buy out, 102 through tenders, 20 through auctions, and 377 through direct sales, of which 200 to lessees. The most common form of privatisation was the open subscription of shares (65.8 per cent of privatized entities). Thirty six companies, the privatization of which failed, were dissolved, although a total of 367 enterprises' privatizations had failed, mainly because of high prices, poor business prospects and heavy indebtedness. The representative of Armenia noted that, for the year 2001, approximately 80 per cent of GNP could be attributed to the private sector, and approximately 20 per cent of GNP to the State-owned sector. The proportion attributed to the State-owned sector had been declining steadily over the previous few years and this trend was expected to continue. The representative of Armenia noted further that the State-owned sector accounted (by value) for only 8.4 per cent of imports and 5.7 per cent of exports in 2001.

17. In response to requests for further information on the sale of privatised enterprises to foreigners, the representative of Armenia noted that the following enterprises privatized through international tenders: "Armentel" State Enterprise, Yerevan Brandy plant, Hotel "Armenia" and Hotel "Ani" (during the privatization of which there was an international mediator). The privatization or transfer of the management rights of the State power, production and distribution network, "Nairit" Scientific-Research Union, as well as "Armenian Airlines" Company was anticipated. In the energy sector eleven hydro-electric power stations had been already privatized, two of had been purchased by foreign persons. The Armenian network of gas distribution was privatized, resulting in the establishment of "ArmRusGasArd" CSC. In 2001 the strategic enterprises of "Almast" CJSC, "Sapfire" JSC, "tranzistor" and "Hrazdan Cement" were privatized, one of which to a foreign entity.

18. In response to further requests for information, the representative of Armenia stated that since 1999, privatisation in Armenia had focussed on attracting of strategic investors, as well as encouraging minority shareholdings in privatized companies. The government continued to seek to create new jobs and development social programs in privatized enterprises. To achieve this shares were privatized by tender, the terms of which reflected other development factors as well as the price.

19. Some members of the Working Party enquired whether any sectors were excluded from privatization. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that according to the “Privatization program for 2001-2003” enterprises of the following sectors were not subject to privatization:
- civil defence and mobilization establishments, military structures;
- minting, state decorations, seals and stamps producing enterprises;
- basic research institutions;
- institutions engaged in fundamental research investigations;
- geologic, cartographic, geodesic, hydrometereological enterprises, enterprises exercising control over conditions and protection of environmental and natural resources;
- state strategic reserves and storage facilities;
- enterprises providing sanitary-epidemiological services;
- standardization and metrology services;
- railways, public highways, Yerevan metro, security services for railway and air traffic, army motorcades;
- enterprises producing radioactive materials (and appliances for them) as well as enterprises involved in research and constructing activities in this area;
- reformatories and corrective labour establishments;
- secondary educational institutions of the Republic of Armenia.
He further added that units generally subject to the Privatization could not be privatized if they are located in:
- engineering - technical buildings, transport structure (bridges, tunnels, dams, undergrounds and etc.) or similar areas, such as railways, social sphere units (schools, institutes, cultural units, etc.);
- defense and security units.
He noted, however that enterprises excluded from privatisation represented only 8 per cent of GDP.

Table 1 (a) Privatised enterprises in the period 1994-2002

Type of Privatization	Priv.		I&T	Ag.	UC	C	E		S	H	I&T	O	PP	Not Priv
	T	In 2001												T	In 2001
Direct Sale	377	48	144	67	40	17	8	24	25	15	5	32	17	13
of which to lessees	200	10	81	29	30	11	7	9	1	8	1	23		3
Tender	102	21	20	24	18		9	9	15	1		6	14	136	48
Auction	20	1	9	10				1					4	18	10
Share Auction	62		26	27	6			1			2			3
Shares Open Subscription	1081	20	395	344	186	30	15	46	14	1	30	20	43	196	15
In Specialized Markets	1							1						1
New Stock Issue
Total	1643	90	594	472	250	47	32	82	54	17	37	58	78	367	73
Liquidation
Government Decision	137	26	25	29	37	-	3	6	17	8	1	11
Dissolved	49	21	12	7	6	-	1	2	15	1	-	5
In the Process of Bankruptcy	52	17	10	8	24	-	1	4	-	-	1	4
Court Decision on Bankruptcy	46	25	9	7	23	-	1	4	-	-	1	1
No Court Decision on Bankruptcy	6	2	1	1	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
Companies Dissolved	36	13	3	14	7	-	1	-	2	7	-	2

Table 1 (b) Number of small enterprises privatized until 1999

	made
Small	8,308	9,391	286	7

Table 1 c Total privatizations

	Paid (thousand Drams) Total	of which by certificates	by Drams
Medium to large enterprises	105,321,836.2	39,766,020.0	65,555,816.2
Unfinished construction site	524,912.4	176,180.0	348,732.4
Small enterprises	27,161,321.8	23,856,460.0	3,304,861.8
Total	133,008,070.4	63,798,660.0	69,209,410.4

According to the amendments in the Law on Privatization made since the year 2001, the following changes applied to the above table:

1. The method of privatization through “International tender” was discontinued, since all types of prospective purchasers can participate in the tender so all types of tenders are presented together.
2. Closed distribution of shares was one of the methods of privatization through direct sales, so the information on privatization via closed distribution of stocks was included in the data on direct sales.
3. The sale of assets to the lessees was one of the methods of privatization through direct sales, so the information on privatization via sale of assets to the lessees was included in the data on direct sales.
4. Though the Law envisages privatization through share auction, it was currently out of practice by reason of its ineffectiveness. However, taking into account the fact that some enterprises were privatized via this method, the information was included in the table.
5. The Law on Privatization currently in force provides for privatization through the issuance of new shares.
6. The dissolution of companies was now used more frequently, so it was presented in the table in more detailed form.

20. The representative of Armenia added that within Armenia there remained some concerns about the privatization programme, particularly in relation to overall concept of privatization, and the desirability of voucher versus tender. As had been the case with some other transition economies, short term gains from privatization proved to be overstated. A more realistic approach currently prevailed which as oriented toward maximization of money gains from privatization. It was clear that many years may elapse before the privatised enterprise could become a genuinely profitable business, within which period the enterprise may change owners several times. The representative of Armenia stated that after taking all these considerations into account, the government had recently adopted a more pragmatic approach. Currently, the main objectives of the state privatization policy were to try and maximise cash returns from the privatisation on an enterprise in combination with appropriate management reform.

21. He further noted that this approach had lead to a recent focus on the tender method of company privatization. Whenever possible, enterprises were sold to strategic, long-term investors. This in turn assisted the government's objective of job creation and continuing social improvements. In this connection, the new Law on Privatization of State-owned Assets provided greater flexibility in privatizing individual enterprises, with respect to the form of privatization, as well as with respect to the terms of payment. The Government had also begun the process of winding-up enterprises previously offered for privatization in respect of which privatization had failed. He further noted that the transparency of information relating to privatized enterprises was ensured, and detailed information on privatized enterprises was readily available in Armenia's mass media and on a special internet page (www.privatization.am).

22. In response to a question concerning privatisation of agricultural land, the representative of Armenia stated that almost 70 per cent of agricultural land had been privatised. Title to all land had been made freely transferable. The small share of land still in State hands was reserve land and land used for certain kinds of agricultural support activities described in paragraphs 157-159 below. There was no timetable for the privatization of the agricultural land remaining in State hands.

23. The representative of Armenia confirmed that to ensure full transparency and to keep WTO members informed of its progress in the reform of its transforming economic and trade regime, Armenia would provide annual reports to WTO Members on developments in its programme of privatization along the lines of the information provided to the Working Party, and on the other issues related to its economic reforms as relevant to its obligations under the WTO Agreement. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Investment regime
24. The representative of Armenia stated that the 1994 Law on Foreign Investments regulated Armenia’s foreign investment regime. The Law was designed to attract foreign investment and provided guarantees against nationalization, by requiring that expropriation only take place following a judicial decision. In such a case, full compensation would be payable. He further noted that foreign investors were indemnified against damages resulting from illegal actions by Government, or from the improper actions by the Government (as determined by a Court of Law). The Law also guaranteed investors the right to freely repatriate profits and assets. In the event that foreign investment legislation was changed after an investment has occurred, the investor concerned was entitled to an exemption from any less favourable provisions during a five year period. The representative of Armenia further noted that discussion of a new Investment Law had been discontinued. The main reason for this was the recognition that the existing legislation did fit the current economic situation and there was no need for new legislation to coordinate foreign investors activities.

25. The representative of Armenia recalled the description of the Law on Profit Tax described in paragraph 10 above. He further added that Decree No. 124 expressly stipulated that the unified system of export and import of goods and services was extended to all economic entities of the Republic of Armenia, irrespective of the form of ownership and the place of registration. This permitted enterprises with foreign investment to also enjoy the benefits of certain duty-free treatment available to domestically owned enterprises.

26. In response to further questions he further noted that foreign investors were free to choose their own insurers. No investment performance requirements were maintained. There were no export performance requirements for foreign investors. The Government did not intend to introduce any such requirements. He further stated that foreign investors received full national treatment. Any restrictions on investment were applied on a non discriminatory basis between national and foreign investors, although the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia provided that non-citizens did not have the right to own land, although the Land Code permitted foreign citizens, juridical persons, other economic entities and international organizations to lease land in the Republic of Armenia. The Civil Code of Armenia permitted state bodies or local self-government to decide to lease publicly owned land or for private or collective owners to lease their land on the basis of a reciprocal contract between the parties.

- Pricing policies
27. In response to requests for an update on the progress of price reform, the representative of Armenia stated that since 1995, almost all government mandated price controls had been removed. The only domestic prices that were still subject to regulation were those for irrigation (Government Decree No. 240 from March 2002), urban electrical transport, electricity, hot water, gas, heating (delegated to Energy Commission established by the Law on Energy of 7 March 2001), sewage services, garbage collection, and telephone services (Government Decree No. 658 of 28 October 1998 and Government Decree No. 717 of 26 November 1999). Those prices were still subject to regulation because State owned enterprises were the exclusive or dominant suppliers, or in case of telephone services, the private supplier enjoyed exclusive rights on provision of services. All administered prices were adjusted on a regular basis to maintain their real value. In Armenia there was no differentiation in pricing based upon the category of user. The prices of electricity and gas to domestic and industrial users were the same and depended upon the volumes of gas or voltage of electricity used. Prices for petroleum were free and not subject to Government control. According to Armenian legislation the price formulation for electricity and natural gas was the responsibility of an independent Energy Commission. The prices for electricity established by the Energy Commission in pursuance of Decree No. 52 of 11 November 1998 were as follows:

For consumers which use 35 Kw high voltage electricity	16 AMD per KwH
For consumers which use 6 Kw high voltage electricity	20 AMD per KwH
For consumers which use 0.38 Kw high voltage electricity	25 AMD per KwH

The price for natural gas according to Energy Commission Decree No. 34 of 29 November 1999 were as follows:

For consumers which use 35 Kw high voltage electricity	16 AMD per KwH
For consumers which use 6 Kw high voltage electricity	20 AMD per KwH
For consumers which use 0.38 Kw high voltage electricity	25 AMD per KwH

The representative of Armenia confirmed that there was no price differentiation based on type of firm or output.

28. The representative of Armenia added that subsidies on bread, municipal electric transport and garbage collection, and cross subsidies on water and sewerage had been eliminated. The subsidies on district heating and hot water (the only remaining consumer subsidies) were under review. In the case of district heating, which less than one third of households actually receive, the issue of provision of targeted heating subsidies to vulnerable groups would be resolved as part of the overall reform of social assistance.

29. The representative of Armenia confirmed that price controls on products and services in Armenia have been eliminated with the exception of those listed in paragraphs 27 and 28 of this Report, and that in the application of such controls, and any that are introduced or re-introduced in the future, Armenia would apply such measures in a WTO-consistent fashion, taking account of the interests of exporting WTO members as provided for in Article III:9 of the GATT 1994. He also confirmed that the goods and services listed in paragraphs 27 and 28 had been published in the Government’s official newspaper and any products subject to State price controls in the future, including any changes in the initial list reported at the time of accession, would be published in the official newspaper. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

III. FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES AFFECTING FOREIGN TRADE IN GOODS AND trADE IN SERVICES
- Powers of executive, legislative and judiciary, administration of policies on WTO related issues

30. The representative of Armenia said that the legislature of the Republic of Armenia was the National Assembly, which consisted of 131 deputies. The plenary powers of the National Assembly terminated in June in the fourth year after its election, on the opening day of a first session of the newly elected National Assembly when its plenary powers commence. The members of the National Assembly and the Government were authorized to submit Bills for approval by the National Assembly. The National Assembly elected the Chairman by majority vote for the whole period of its plenary powers. The Chairman conducted sessions, administered material and financial resources of the National Assembly and ensured the performance of its ordinary activities. Armenian Laws were enacted adopted by the National Assembly. Laws entered into force upon signature by the President of the Republic and following promulgation, if no other date was stipulated by the respective Law. This procedure applied to all legislative amendments and rectifications, including those relating to the establishment or alteration of tariffs and taxes. The President of the Republic was required to adhere to the Constitution, and oversaw the ordinary activities of the legislative, and all exercise of executive and judicial powers. The President of the Republic was elected by popular vote every five years. The President issued decrees and orders, which were subject to implementation throughout the Republic of Armenia. These decrees and orders should not be in conflict with the Constitution and laws.

31. The representative of Armenia added that the Government carried out the executive power in the Republic of Armenia and comprised the Prime Minister and Ministers. The President of the Republic appointed and dismissed the Prime Minister, as well as, upon recommendation of the Prime Minister, appointed and dismissed the members of the Government. Resolutions of the Government were signed by the Prime Minister, and were ratified by the President. The Prime Minister was responsible for the day-to-day running of the Government and for the coordination of activities of other Ministers. The Prime Minister issued resolutions, which should be signed also by the Minister, responsible for implementation, in cases, envisaged by the Order of Governmental Activities.

32. The representative of Armenia said that in conformity with the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, judicial powers were executed exclusively by the Courts, in accordance with the Constitution and legislation. In administering justice, Judges were independent and answerable only to law. The guarantor of the independence of judicial bodies was the President of the Republic, who was the Head of the Council of Justice. The Minister of Justice and the Procurator General were the Deputy Heads of the Council of Justice. The Courts of general competence were the Courts of First Instance, the Review Courts and the Court of Appeals. The Constitutional Court comprised nine members, five of which were appointed by the National Assembly, and another four were appointed by the President of the Republic. The Constitutional Court adopted resolutions and verdicts. These resolutions were final, could not be challenged and entered into force upon promulgation. According to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, the Constitutional Court should decide on conformity of the provisions of the Agreement Establishing the WTO and of other WTO Agreements with the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia before submitting them for ratification to the National Assembly. If norms, other than those provided by the laws of the Republic, were provided in these Agreements then the norms provided in that Agreement shall prevail. International treaties and agreements that contradicted the Constitution may be ratified after making a corresponding amendment to the Constitution.

33. The representative of Armenia said that according to the 1999 Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia (as amended on 11 September 2001), all economic disputes (whether the parties were natural or legal persons) should first be referred to the jurisdiction of Economic Court. Decisions taken by the Economic Court could be appealed according to the procedures stipulated by Armenian legislation. Armenian legislation did not contemplate any differential treatment between CIS and non-CIS legal entities. As a result of on-going judicial and legal reforms a number of legislative acts had been developed and adopted. In particular, economic litigation was required to be handled through the new Civil Procedure Code and the new Criminal Procedure Code, which entered into force on 1 January and 12 January 1999 respectively. In matters other than economic issue, judicial review of administrative action could be obtained through the Courts of general competence in the area of intellectual property rights protection and customs issues. The Economic Court was authorized to review administrative decisions in all other areas covered by WTO provisions, including rulings in antidumping, safeguard and countervailing duty investigations. The Court of First Instance was authorised to review administrative decisions in cases where citizens are in disagreement. The representative of Armenia advised that, according to the Law on Administrative Infringements, administrative decisions could be appealed to the higher authority within the administrative body after which it could be appealed to the court.

34. The representative of Armenia confirmed that from the date of accession Armenia's laws would provide for the right of appeal of administrative rulings on matters subject to WTO provisions to an independent tribunal in conformity with WTO provisions, including Article X:3(b) of the GATT 1994. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

35. The representative of Armenia added that as a result of the changes in the structure of the Government a Ministry of trade and Economic Development had been created. That new Ministry had been given primary responsibility in most aspects of policy affecting international trade in goods and services. The Ministry of Finance and Economy was responsible for fiscal policy, but decisions on tariffs were made together with the Ministry of trade and Economic Development. The Central Bank was responsible for monetary policy, exchange rate policy and the banking system. The Intellectual Property Agency within the structure of the Ministry of trade and Economic Development was responsible for industrial property protection and copyright protection.

36. The representative of Armenia confirmed that international treaties and agreements ratified by Parliament, including the WTO Agreement, had precedence over domestic laws or other acts in Armenia. He stated that in matters of policy affecting trade in goods and services, including subsidies and taxation, the Central Government retained full authority. Sub-central and Local administrative bodies have no jurisdiction or authority to establish regulations or taxes on goods and services in Armenia independent of the central authorities in matters covered by provisions of the WTO Agreement. Within the framework of the process of Armenia's accession to the WTO, the obligations assumed by the Government of the Republic of Armenia, including the WTO Agreement and Armenia’s Protocol of Accession were subject to implementation uniformly throughout the Republic of Armenia, including in regions engaging in border trade or frontier traffic "special economic zones" and other areas where special regimes for tariffs, taxes and regulations are established. He further confirmed that, from the date of accession, the central government would eliminate or nullify measures taken by sub-central authorities in the Republic of Armenia that were in conflict with the WTO Agreement when those measures were brought to its attention, without requiring affecting parties to petition through the courts. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

37. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that after the signing of the WTO Accession Protocol by the Government of Armenia, all WTO Agreements would be submitted for review to the Constitutional Court of Armenia. Legal conclusion of Armenia's WTO Accession would be accomplished upon ratification of all WTO agreements by the National Assembly. He confirmed that international treaties and agreements ratified by the National Assembly, including WTO Agreements, had precedence over domestic laws or other acts in Armenia. All the laws and legislative instruments necessary for the application of the provisions would be adopted as provided in the Protocol of Accession and would be in place prior to that time. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

IV. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS
- Market Access Negotiations

38. Armenia undertook negotiations on market access in goods with interested members of the Working Party. The Schedule of Concessions and Commitments resulting from those negotiations is in Annex I to the Appendix of the Protocol of Accession of Armenia.

- Registration requirements
- The rights of import and export (trading rights)
39. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that with certain exceptions necessary to safeguard human, animal and plant health and the environment, the former State monopoly in foreign trade in Armenia was abolished in 1989, and was replaced by a registration requirement Enterprises or private entrepreneurs engaging in trading (including importation) were required to be registered in the State Register of Enterprises.

40. He further stated that the Decree of the President of the Republic of Armenia of 4 January 1992 entitled On Foreign Economic Activity, provided that all enterprises or branches, subsidiaries and representations thereof that were registered and operating in the Republic of Armenia, regardless of their form of ownership, were granted the right to conduct foreign economic activity without any additional registration requirements. The legislation governing company incorporation and registration consisted of: The Law on the State Register of Legal Entities; The Armenian Civil Code, 1999; The Law on Foreign Investment, 1994; The Law on State Fees, 1997. The State registration of enterprises and private entrepreneurs in the Republic of Armenia, as well as the procedure and conditions for the use of information provided through the registration process was defined in the Law on the State Registration of Legal Entities of 26 April 2001. Additional provisions could be found in the Civil Code, and for foreign investors in the Law on Foreign Investment.

41. Engaging in entrepreneurial activities without State registration was prohibited in the Republic of Armenia. Natural persons were permitted to import limited quantities of items into Armenia for personal use without registration, although to engage in resale of those items registration as a sole entrepreneur was required. No registration was required in Armenia for any enterprise operating from outside the Republic of Armenia as an exporter to Armenia. The representative of Armenia noted that with the entering into force of the new Law on State Registration of Legal Entities (26 April 2001) a significant improvement of registration procedures had taken place.

42. He further noted that certain types of activities required a licence. The Law on Licensing (adopted on 30 May 2001) listed the types of activities subject to licensing. Licenses were of the following type; licenses issued by "simple" procedures; licenses issued by "compound" procedures. A simple licence required submission of an application to receive a licence; a copy of a legal entity's charter and a copy of a state registration certificate, a copy of the state registration certificate (for an individual entrepreneur) and any other documents provided by law. To obtain a compound licence an applicant had to supply documents required for a simple licence as well as documents certifying the professional qualification of a person (as applicable). A simple licence was required to be issued within 3 days of submission of the complete application. A compound licence was required to be issued within 30 days, based on the conclusions of a licensing commission.

43. The State registration of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs was carried out by the State Registry, which operated as part of the Ministry of Justice. The State Registry consisted of a Central Body and regional divisions. In accordance with Article 21 of the Law on the State Registration of Legal Entities the following documents should be submitted to the regional subdivisions of the State Registry at the legal entity's place of location; the application of the founder; the protocol of the founders' meeting on establishment of the legal entity, (signed by the chairman and secretary); two copies of the charter approved by the meeting; and a receipt for the State fee. Legal entities with a foreign founder were also required to submit an extract from the commercial registration book of the given country (or equivalent document confirming the legal status of the foreign investor) and founding documents (or the corresponding extracts), translated into Armenian and verified.

44. He further added that not later than five days after submitting all necessary documents, the regional subdivision of the State Registry was required to complete the state registration of a legal entity. The state registration of individual entrepreneurs was required within a period of two days. A unified system of codes of the State registration of legal entities operated in the Republic of Armenia. The Unified State Register contained information about all legal entities and individual entrepreneurs registered in the Republic of Armenia and was maintained by the Central Body of the State Registry, which updated it at least once every 10 days. The information of the Unified State Register was open for general public access.

45. He further noted that to obtain state registration of an amended business charter, the following documents must be submitted to the regional subdivision of the State registry: an application; the decision of the authorized body relating to the amendments and supplements in the charter, as well as the approval of the restated charter with amendments and supplements; the amendments or supplements of the charter; receipt for state fee payment. Any changes and amendments in statutory documents, or changes in any data entries verified by State registration, were also subject to State registration. The documents necessary for state registrations conditioned by different types of reorganization were defined by Article 23 of the Law.

46. For the state registration of the winding-up of a legal entity the following documents shall be submitted: an application, the decision of the founders; references from tax and social security bodies; a corresponding document on the return of the seal; the state registration certificate.

47. The representative of Armenia confirmed that the former State monopoly in foreign trade in Armenia had been abolished and that no restrictions on the right of foreign and domestic individuals and enterprises to import and export goods and services within the Republic of Armenia existed, except as provided for in WTO Agreements; that individuals and firms were not restricted in their ability to import or export based on their registered scope of business; and that the criteria for registration of companies in Armenia were generally applicable and published officially and generally available to traders for their review. He further confirmed that from the date of accession, Armenia would ensure that all of its laws and regulations relating to trade in goods and all fees, charges or taxes levied on such rights would be in full conformity with its WTO obligations, including Articles VIII:1(a), XI:1 and III:2 and 4 of the GATT 1994 and that it would also implement such laws and regulations in full conformity with these obligations. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Customs tariff
48. The representative of Armenia stated that the Law on Customs Tariffs, adopted by the Parliament in August 1993, provided a legislative framework for setting tariffs and dealing with customs matters. Decree No. 615 issued by the Government in December 1993 introduced new customs duties, which were further modified by Government Decree No. 224 of May 1994 and by Government Decree No. 39 of January 1995. According to the new Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, adopted in 1995, any alterations to the Tariff were required to be adopted by the National Assembly. The Law on Customs Tariffs Rates, adopted by the National Assembly in April 1997, introduced the new list of customs duties. The rectification of the Law on Customs Tariffs was accomplished by the Law on Amendments to the Law on Customs Tariffs in September 1997. In December 1998, the Law on Customs Duties was adopted by the National Assembly. The Law on Customs Duties covered the following sections: customs duties and types thereof; customs valuation; and customs tariffs rates. Thus an integration of the Law on Customs Tariffs of the Republic of Armenia and the Law on Customs Tariffs Rates of the Republic of Armenia had been made. The Law was in full compliance with the relevant WTO provisions. Armenia had been using the Harmonized System of Commodity Classification since 1991. In July 2000, the new Customs Code of the Republic of Armenia was adopted by the National Assembly, which incorporated the provisions of the Law on Customs Duties, including the customs duty rates. The Customs Code entered into force on 1 January 2001.

49. The representative of Armenia said that the customs tariffs were expressed in ad valorem terms and were levied on c.i.f. values, except for tobacco products. The Law "On Fixed Charges for Tobacco Products" of 31 March 2000 provided that customs duties on tobacco products were levied at a fixed rate. This law stipulated that imports of tobacco products were subject to specific charges consisting of a value added tax, an excise tax and customs duties, according to the following rates:

Table Two

CN Code	Brief Description of Products	Amount of fixed charges (US$ for 1,000 items) for imported products	Amount of fixed charges (US$ for 1,000 items) for domestically produced products
2402 10 001	Cigars	3,000	2,200
2402 100 09	Cigarillos	30	22
2402 20 900	Cigarettes with filters	11	8
2402 20 910	Cigarettes without filters	6	3,5

He further added that the difference between the fixed charges on imported products and the fixed charges on domestically produced products represented a customs duty within the context of the Republic of Armenia’s commitment on ad valorem tariff rate bindings, as follows:

Table Three

CN Code	Brief Description of Products	Average Value of Imports in 2001 (per 1000 items) US$	Specific Customs Duty (rate per 1000 items) US$	Equivalent Ad Valorem Customs Duty rate %
2402 10 001	Cigars	5,750	800	13.9
2402 100 09	Cigarillos	65	8	12.3
2402 20 900	Cigarettes with filters	27	3	11.5
2402 20 910	Cigarettes without filters	27	2,5	9.3

50. In response to requests for information on any further specific duties charged on imports, he noted that the Law on Amendment to the Customs Code of the Republic of Armenia of 26 December 2000, established customs duties for alcohol and alcoholic beverages. Some members of the Working Party expressed concerns that the specific rates applied might exceed the bound ad valorem rate. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that following accession, the Ministry of trade would periodically review specific rates against average import values for subject goods to ensure that those rates did not exceed the bound ad valorem equivalent rate. In response to further requests for information he provided the following table:

Table Four

2203	Beer	1 litre	50	434.8	11.5
2204	Grape wines	1 litre	100	845.0	11.8
220410	Sparkling wines	1 litre	75	591.0	12.7
2205	Vermouth and other wine of fresh grapes flavoured with plants or aromatic substances	1 litre	140	1166.6	12.0
2206	Other brewed drinks (for example, cider, perry, mead);	1 litre	60	572.9	10.5
2207	Ethyl spirit	1 litre (by recalculation of 100% spirit)	70	498.2	14.1
2208	Spirit drinks, including
220820	Made from distillation of grape wine and wine ingredients (cognac, armagnac, etc.)	1 litre (by recalculation of 100% spirit)	1100	7329.3	13.9
220830	Whiskies		370	2892.9	12.8
220840	Rum & tafia		420	2438.6	12.9
220850	Gin & Geneva		450	3913.0	11.5
220860	Vodka		240	2000.0	12
220870	liquor, and fruit-vodka		600	5454.5	11
220890	Other		240	1920.0	12.5

51. The representative of Armenia stated that 279 items were specified in Armenia’s tariff schedule. The majority of product categories identified at the two-digit level of the Harmonized System had the same rate of duty. Some members of the Working Party asked whether it would be possible to disaggregate the tariff to the four or greater digit level. In response, the representative of Armenia stated if it proved necessary the Government of Armenia would continue disaggregating its tariff schedule from its present level.

52. The representative of Armenia noted that more than sixty per cent of the items in the tariff schedule were subject to a duty rate of zero (161 items) with the remaining 97 items subject to a 10 per cent duty rate. Taking into account the volume of imported goods belonging to each of those groups, the weighted average tariff was less than 4 per cent. Tariff revenue comprised about 5.06 per cent of budget revenue in 2001.

53. The representative of Armenia stated that the rates of customs duty would not be applied in excess of the levels bound in Armenia’s WTO Schedule of Concessions on Goods, which is annexed to the Protocol of Accession of Armenia. In addition, upon request, Armenia would consult with WTO Members to address any concerns related to the application of specific duties to imports where Armenia had adopted bound ad valorem tariff rates. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Other duties and charges levied on imports
54. The representative of Armenia confirmed that there were no other duties and charges levied on imports except ordinary customs duties and the fees for services rendered by customs bodies as described in paragraphs 57-60 below. Any such charges applied to imports from the date of accession would be in conformity with WTO provisions of Armenia's Protocol of Accession. The representative of Armenia confirmed that regarding import/export documentation there was no requirement for authentication of the documentation by Armenian consulates overseas, and there was no fee charged in this respect. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia would bind all duties and charges, other than ordinary customs duties, at zero in Armenia's Market Accession Schedule under Article II:1(b) of the GATT 1994, annexed to the Protocol of Accession of Armenia. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Tariff rate quotas
55. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia did not apply any import quotas, including tariff rate quotas. The representative of Armenia confirmed that his Government had no plans to introduce tariff rate quotas.

- Tariff exemptions
56. The representative of Armenia stated that all tariff exemptions other than those granted in the context of free trade area agreements were granted on a MFN basis. According to Article 18 of the Republic of Armenia Law on Customs Duties of 30 December 1998, tariff exemptions were granted in respect of the following:
- capital assets imported by foreign investors and designated for a statutory fund of joint ventures and enterprises with foreign investments;
- goods in transit through the Republic of Armenia;
- trucks and vehicles, regularly operating as freight and passenger carriers through the Republic of Armenia, as well as fuel, food, tools and other minor items necessary for temporary use to perform these operations;
- foreign exchange, bonds and other securities;
- goods imported into the Republic of Armenia within the framework of humanitarian aid or charity programs;
- specific goods temporarily imported into Republic of Armenia and further exported without being processed, such as fair and exposition exhibits, commodity patterns and package, professional equipment of temporary visitors, advertising materials, live animals, etc.;
- goods imported into duty-free shops for subsequent exportation from the Republic of Armenia;
- goods imported into the Republic of Armenia as a property of foreign clients with a view of processing in the Republic of Armenia and subsequent exportation;
- goods and articles imported by the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia;
- any other instances foreseen in international agreements.
According to Article 104 of the Republic of Armenia’s new Customs Code, which had replaced the Law on Customs Duties, the following goods were exempt from the imposition of customs duties:
- goods in transit;
- goods temporarily imported;
- goods temporarily exported;
- goods temporarily imported for inward processing;
- goods temporarily exported for outward processing;
- goods released into a customs warehouse;
- goods released into a free customs warehouse;
- goods released under the regime of re-importation and re-exportation, except for the cases foreseen by the Code;
- goods released to be destroyed;
- goods released to a duty free shop;
- vehicles used for regular interstate transport of freight, luggage and travellers, as well as tools, fuel, foodstuffs, which may be needed during the trip, at stopovers or for fixing the malfunctions of the mentioned means of transport;
- currency, foreign currency and securities;
- goods imported into the Republic of Armenia within the framework of humanitarian aid or charity programmes;
- goods imported into the Republic of Armenia for the contribution to the statutory fund of commercial organizations and included in the list of goods established by the Government of the Republic of Armenia;
- sample quantities of goods imported into the Republic of Armenia within the framework of exhibitions, international fairs and similar events.

- Customs fees and charges for services rendered
57. Some members of the Working Party stated that they considered the ad valorem customs fee levied by Armenia on imports was inconsistent with the provisions of the WTO, in particular, Article VIII of the GATT 1994. They also noted that a transition period to bring the fee into conformity with Article VIII was not appropriate. Those members considered that Armenia should conform with the requirements of Article VIII from the date of accession, and from that time the proceeds from the collection of fees should only be used for the operation of customs clearance facilities. They further stated that total revenues from the fee should not exceed the actual cost of customs clearance of the imported goods. Those members stated that following accession, Armenia should provide information on the method of calculation of the fee and the cost of provision of customs clearance facilities, to WTO Members upon request.

58. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that according to the amendment to Government Decree No. 615, which had entered into force on 1 May 1996, an ad valorem, customs fee of 0.3 per cent had been charged on imports, with the upper limit of AMD 600,000 (approximately US$1,200). The Law on Customs Fee, adopted by the National Assembly on 28 December 1998, abandoned the ad valorem principle for the charging of customs fees replacing it with a uniform fee of Dram 3,500 (about US$6.50) for customs processing and specific weight-related fee of Dram 300 per ton (about US$0.55) for freight inspection. Article 3 of the Law on Customs Fee, set the amounts of the fees.

59. He further noted that the Republic of Armenia’s Customs Code, which incorporated the provisions of the Law on Customs Fees, was adopted by National Assembly on 28 December 1998. According to Article 110 of the new Code, the following rates of customs fees were applicable as of 1 January 2001:

1. A customs fee of AMD 3,500 for the customs formalities (apart from inspection and registration) in respect of the goods and means of transport carried across the customs border of the Republic of Armenia, as well as currency and foreign currency carried by the banks.

2. A customs fee levied on the inspection and registration of the goods, except the goods transported through pipelines and electric transmission circuits, the amount of:
- AMD 1,000 for the customs control of cargo declared under the same declaration and having up to one ton of weight;
- AMD 300 for each additional (or incomplete) ton of weight of cargo declared under the same declaration and having above one ton of weight.

3. A customs fee of AMD 500,000 monthly for the customs control and registration of the goods transported through pipelines and electric transmission circuits.

4. If the customs formalities are performed in places other than those specified by the customs bodies, the customs fees should be levied as twice the amount of the rates prescribed by Article 110.

5. A customs fee of AMD 1,000 for each document form distributed by the customs bodies.

6. A customs fee of AMD 10,000 per each 100 km for the customs escort of the goods throughout the Republic of Armenia.

7. A daily customs fee for the cargo stored by the customs bodies:
- AMD 1,000 for the cargo under 1 ton of weight;
- AMD 300 for each additional one (or incomplete) ton of cargo;

8. A customs fee for the customs control of the means of transport:
- AMD 2,000 for a car with up to 10 seats;
- AMD 5,000 for other means of transport.
According to Article 111 of the new Customs Code, the following goods were exempt from the customs fees:
- goods that entered into the Republic of Armenia within the framework of humanitarian aid and charity programmes;
- all goods carried across the customs border of the Republic of Armenia by natural persons and permitted for duty free importation;
- cultural values exported under the regime of temporary exportation and subject to re-importation;
- means of transport involved in regular international transport operations when in the course of such transportation.
The fee was also applied to exports and to import purchases by the Government of Armenia. Proceeds from customs fee collection are transferred to the State budget.

60. The representative of Armenia confirmed that from the date of accession, Armenia would not reintroduce an ad valorem customs fee. The fee for customs processing established under the Law on Customs Fees of 30 December 1998 and as of 1 January 2001, by the Republic of Armenia’s new Customs Code, would be applied in conformity with WTO obligations, in particular Articles VIII and X of the GATT 1994. The level of applied fee would not exceed the approximate cost of customs processing of individual import and export transactions. Revenues from the collection of the fees would be used solely for customs processing of imports and exports, and total annual revenue from collection of the fees would not exceed the approximate cost of customs processing operations for the items subject to fees. He also confirmed that revenues from the fees were not used for customs processing of imports exempted from the fees. Information on the application and level of the fees, revenues collected and their use, would be provided to WTO Members upon request. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Application of internal taxes to imports
61. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that Armenia's tax system had been completely overhauled since 1992, as part of the Government's overall policy of economic transformation towards a market economy. On 14 April 1997 the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia adopted the new Law on Taxes. Under this Law the taxes applied in Armenia were as follows:
- value added tax;
- excise tax;
- profit tax;
- income tax;
- property tax;
- land tax
- simplified tax.
In particular, two indirect taxes were imposed on imports and domestic production in Armenia - the value added tax, which was charged on the turnover of goods and services, and the excise tax on certain goods. He recalled that details of those taxes were provided in paragraphs 62-71 below of this Report.

- Value Added Tax
62. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that after the Law on Value Added Tax entered into force on 1 July 1997, the destination principle of VAT application was applied to all countries. Armenian exports to any destination were charged at zero rate, and any imports to Armenia were charged at the standard rate. In this regard, Armenia ensured MFN treatment in the application of VAT to imports. The VAT was uniformly charged at the rate of 20 per cent on sales of domestic and imported goods and services. The value added tax was calculated and levied by customs bodies on goods imported to Armenia irrespective of the countries of exportation. With respect to certain imported goods with zero customs duty rate and not subject to excise tax, listed in the Law "On approval of the list of goods imported by organizations and private enterprises that have zero custom duty rate and are not subject to excise taxation and for which VAT shall not be calculated and levied by customs authority" adopted by the National Assembly on 25 June 2001, the value added tax was calculated and levied by the Tax Authorities upon their sale or consumption.

63. He further added that the VAT for all imported goods (except for goods to which a 0 per cent customs duty applied and which were not subject to excise tax) was levied by customs bodies at the moment of importation irrespective of the country of origin. The items exempted from VAT included: education in secondary schools, exercise books and music books for schoolchildren scientific research work; sales of veterinary drugs; sales of domestically produced agricultural products by the producer; activities related to the provision of pensions; some financial operations and services, etc. In addition, zero-rate tax was applied to: the taxable turnover of goods exported out of the Republic of Armenia; goods imported for official usage by diplomatic and consular representations or by other equivalent international, intergovernmental (interstate) organizations, as well as goods and services acquired by those organizations in the Republic of Armenia; transit of foreign pay-loads through the Republic of Armenia; construction and relevant (designing, research, etc.). He recalled that the full list of VAT exemptions had been provided to the Working Party. That list forms Annex II to this Report.

64. Some members of the Working Party noted that Armenia's exemption of domestic agricultural output sold by farmers and sales of domestic veterinary drugs from the value added tax appeared to constitute discriminatory treatment of imports in relation to similar domestic products and was therefore inconsistent with Article III of the GATT 1994 and should be eliminated upon accession. The representative of Armenia responded that the value added tax exemption for farmers was not extended beyond the point of first sale, i.e., agricultural produce after it left the farm was subject to application of the VAT, and that it was not intended to discriminate against imports. The exemption was an integral part of Armenia's agricultural support system and, a transitional period of application after accession would be necessary prior to its elimination in order to minimize harm to Armenia's agricultural sector. This was also true for the tax exemption for veterinary drugs. In this regard, legislation had been adopted by Armenia's Parliament eliminating the VAT exemption. This law on amending the VAT, Law No. 420-N, had been enacted on 21 October 2002 and would be implemented from 1 January 2009. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

65. The representative of Armenia confirmed that his Government had enacted legislation that would eliminate, as of 31 December 2008, the existing exemption from the value added tax of domestic agricultural production sold by producers and for sales of veterinary products. He added that during this period, the scope of the exemption would not be increased, either in terms of coverage or level of exemption, nor would the scope or amount of the tax exemption be restored if it were reduced during this period. He further confirmed that, to ensure transparency during this period, Armenia would notify the General Council annually of the status of the tax exemption, and on its scope and level. Upon request, Armenia would consult with WTO Members concerning the status of the VAT exemption and its effect on their trade. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Excise Tax
66. In response to requests for information from members of the Working Party concerning excise tax the representative of Armenia stated that according to the Law on Excise Tax, which entered into force on 1 August 2000, imposed excise tax on both domestic and imported goods. Excise tax on imported goods was collected by the customs authorities, and excise tax on local production was collected by the tax authorities. According to the Law on Excise Tax, excise tax was imposed on the following goods:
- Beer;
- Grape and other wines, wine ingredients, including:
- sparkling wines;
- champagne;
- Vermouth and other wine of fresh grapes flavoured with plants or aromatic substances;
- Other brewed drinks, including:
- made from distillation of grape wine and wine ingredients (cognac, armagnac, etc.);
- vodka, liquor, and fruit-vodka;
- Tobacco substitutes;
- Primary oil and oil;
- Oil gas and other gaseous hydrocarbons (except for natural gas).

67. He added that for goods produced in Armenia the amount of excise tax collected was based the value of the turnover or the sale of the goods, based on the sales prices (without excise and value added taxes). The taxpayers producing/selling taxable goods in Armenia paid the excise tax on domestically produced goods by the fifteenth of the next month following the sale of goods. For goods imported into Armenia the amount of excise tax collected was based on the customs value of the goods (without value added taxes and customs tariffs). In the Republic of Armenia excise taxes charged on imported goods were levied by the customs bodies within ten days after importation.
The rates of excise taxes were as follows:

Table Five

HS number	Product description	Taxable base	Rate(AMD)
2203	Beer	1 litre	70
2204 220410	Grape and other wines, wine ingredients,  including Sparkling wines, Champagne	1 litre	100 180 250
2205	Vermouth and other wine of fresh grapes flavoured with plants or aromatic substances.	1 litre	500
2206	Other brewed drinks (for example, cider, perry, mead);	1 litre	180
2207	Ethyl spirit	1 litre (by recalculation of 100% spirit)	600
2208 220860, 220870	Spirit drinks, including Made from distillation of grape wine and wine ingredients (cognac, armagnac, etc.)Vodka, liquor, and fruit-vodka	1 litre	1,500 1,200 300
2403	Tobacco substitutes	1 kilogram	1,500
2709	Primary oil and oil	1 ton	27,000
2711 (excluding 271111 and 271121)	Oil gas and other gaseous hydrocarbons (except for natural gas)	1 ton	1,000

For goods under code 2208 with spirit concentration over 40 per cent the tax rate was increased by additional AMD 7.5 for each per cent exceeding 40 per cent. The excise tax rates of tobacco products, petrol and diesel fuel were determined by separate laws. The Law "On Fixed Charges for Tobacco Products" of 31 March 2000 established fixed fees on tobacco products. According to the Law the fixed fees on imported tobacco products substituted for the value added tax, the excise tax and customs duties, and the fees on tobacco products produced in Armenia substituted for the value added tax and the excise tax. The law stipulated the following rates for imported and domestically produced tobacco products:

Table Six

CN code	Brief Description of Products	Amount of fixed fees ($US for 1,000 items)
		On imported products	On domestically produced products
2402 10 001	Cigars	3,000	2,200
2402 100 09	Cigarillos	30	22
2402 20 900	Cigarettes with filters	11	8
2402 20 910	Cigarettes without filters	6	3,5

 

68. The representative of Armenia stated that on 1 January 1997 Armenia equalized excise taxes on domestic goods and imports of the same or like products as part of its accession commitments (see tables five and six of this Report). Furthermore, from 1 August 2000 the new law on Excise Tax defined specific tax rates, that were the same for both domestically-produced and imported goods.

69. Some members of the Working Party stated that they considered that the taxation of vodka was only one-fifth the rate of excise taxation of other spirits. This appeared to conflict with the provisions of Article III concerning the taxation of similar products. Those members requested that Armenia present information on how it intended to bring its excise taxation of vodka into conformity with the its excise taxation of other distilled spirit beverages. Some members of the Working Party also noted that the different rates of excise tax for tobacco products constituted a tariff duty applied within Armenia's bound rates of duty.

70. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that legislation had been enacted by Armenia's Parliament in Law No. HO-415-N on 21 October 2002 and would be implemented before the date of accession to equalise the level of excise duties applied to all distilled beverages, vodka, cognac, liquor, etc. (HS 2208) and to equalise the level of excise duties applied to champagne, sparkling wines, wines, etc. (HS 2204). The Working Party took note of these commitments.

71. Some members of the Working Party noted that the non-application of these taxes to imports from FSU States could be seen to give rise to discrimination against products from non-FSU countries. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia had switched to the destination principle of taxation with respect to imports from all sources. In addition Armenia was attempting to persuade its CIS trading partners of the desirability of charging these taxes at destination and not origin. He further confirmed that no credit was given for excise taxes applied in the exporting CIS country when determining the amount of excise tax payable for CIS imports into Armenia.

72. The representative of Armenia confirmed that, from the date of accession, Armenia would apply its domestic taxes, including value-added and excise taxes, in a non-discriminatory manner consistent with Articles I and III of the GATT 1994, with the exception noted in paragraphs 64-65 above. In this regard, in accordance with the new Laws on VAT and on Excise tax, these taxes were applied at an equal rate on domestic and imported goods and Armenia applied the destination principle to value-added and excise taxes with respect to imports from all sources, and no credit was given for excise or other taxes applied to imports in their home markets prior to export to Armenia. In addition, the method of application of all indirect taxes applied to imports would be published in the official newspaper or other widely available source and readily available to importers, exporters, and domestic producers. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Quantitative import restrictions (including prohibitions, quotas and licensing systems) and licensing procedures
73. The representative of Armenia stated that Resolution No. 124, 29 December 1995, regulated non-tariff measures in Armenia. Most imports were free of any prohibitions or quotas. Import restrictions were imposed only for health, security, and environmental reasons. The items affected were all kinds of weapons; military technology and the consumables necessary for its production; technologies, equipment and locators of nuclear materials (including heating materials); special non-nuclear materials and services related to it; and ionizing radiation sources. The importation of those products was subject to specific authorization issued by the Government of the Republic of Armenia. In response to requests from members of the Working Party, the representative of Armenia stated that Armenia would provide its initial notification of the laws and measures that establish these requirements to the Committee on Import Licensing upon accession. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

74. The representative of Armenia noted that, taking into consideration the need to control the safety of certain products, labour and services for the protection of the national environment and human life and health, as well as the protection of consumer rights, some products were subject to mandatory conformity assessment according to Resolution No. 239, 12 May 2000. Pharmaceutical products and medicines are excluded from the list of products subject to mandatory conformity assessment (mandatory certification), but were subject to import and export permission requirements. The representative of Armenia stated that the list of pharmaceutical products and medicines subject to import and export permissions, issued by the Ministry of Health, was established by Government Resolution 581 of 20 September 2000 as follows:

Table Seven

	HS number
Pharmaceutical products, medicines	051000; 1211; 2941; 3001; 3002; 3003; 3004; 3005; 300630 000; 300650 000; 300660; 380840;  1108*; 1301; 1302; 1504; 152000 000; 1702; 1804; 1805; 2207; 2209; 2501; 2520; 2712; 2801-2802; 280440 000; 281000 000; 284700 000; 285100; 2904-2909; 2912-2940; 2942; 3301.

5. The representative of Armenia stated that according to the provisions of the “Law on Licensing” of the Republic of Armenia, a number of activities are subject to licensing. The list of activities subject to licensing is provided in Annex III.

76. In response to questions concerning the importation of pharmaceutical products and medicines, the representative of Armenia stated that the importation of those products required authorisation from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia (except for veterinary drugs and related products). Resolution 581 "On issuing permission for importing and exporting pharmaceuticals", stipulated that:
- permissions for importation of pharmaceuticals were issued by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia;
- the permissions were for single use only;
- permissions could be obtained by:
- those importers that had a licence for conducting exportation and importation activity in pharmaceutical products and (or) medicines, given by the Ministry of Health;
- those importers that have a licence for production of pharmaceutical products and (or) medicines, given by the Ministry of Health;
- those importers who had no licence, but whose activity was connected to the pharmaceutical products and medicines research, experimental testing, quality, effectiveness and safety control.

77. He further added that to obtain permission to import those products, the following documents and conditions were required:

(a) a licence for commercial activities involving pharmaceutical products in the Republic of Armenia. (The Law on Licensing, Resolution 36). The Law on Licensing stipulated that the production and trade in medicines, trade in herbs, pharmaceutical activities, medical aid and services by organisations or individual entrepreneurs, genetic engineering, implementation of medium professional and high medical educational programs were subject to State licensing in the Republic of Armenia. After the Law on Licensing had been adopted and entered into force some Resolutions needed to be changed to avoid overlaps and disparity. The Ministry of Health was responsible for these changes, but Resolutions except Resolutions 161 and 415 were still in force. The Law "On Medicines" stipulated that importation and exportation activity had to be licensed. Specific requirements for importation and exportation activity licensing were being elaborated by the Government. Presently, a licence for wholesale trade gave to business entities a right to conduct importation and exportation activities. Resolution 36 stipulated that:
- pharmaceutical and medical activities were subject to licensing in the Republic of Armenia;
- licensing was carried out by the Ministry of Health;
- licenses were issued for a period of 5 years.
Licenses for wholesale and retail trade in pharmaceutical products and medical utensils were issued by the State Licensing Committee of the Ministry of Health. The procedures for issuing licenses were approved by the Resolution 188. The same procedures (including import permission for pharmaceuticals) applied to individuals who had received medical and pharmaceutical education in foreign countries. In the case of the existence of international agreements signed by the Republic of Armenia the procedures specified in the agreement applied (Resolution 188, 24 July 1996). Foreign specialists invited to implement programs of international and intergovernmental agreements were not subject to licensing.
(b) Imported or exported pharmaceutical products were required to be registered in the Republic of Armenia. The registration of pharmaceutical products and medical utensils was performed in the Republic of Armenia in accordance with the recently passed Law "On Medicines" and in compliance with registration requirements, approved by the Pharmaceutical Department of the Ministry of Health.
(c) Imported and exported pharmaceuticals should have at least one year of their expiration period remaining, except for the pharmaceuticals whose original period of expiration was less than one year (the latter should have at least two-thirds of the period of expiration remaining at the time of importing).

78. The representative of Armenia recalled that the general rule for conducting any business in Armenia is that legal and natural persons wishing to conduct economic activity must be registered in Armenia. Registration requirements and procedures were simple and short in time, they did not include any prohibitions or restrictions on importation and exportation, and they did not discriminate between domestic and foreign individuals or enterprises. All enterprises, or branches, subsidiaries and representations thereof that are registered and operating in Armenia, notwithstanding their form or nationality of ownership, have the right to conduct foreign economic activity, including importation and exportation (Presidential Decree on Foreign Economic Activity of 4 January 1992). Thus, a foreign firm desiring to import its products into Armenia need only apply for State registration, as well as meet such additional requirements as may apply to the import of specific commodities. The additional requirements applied with respect to trade in pharmaceutical products were not restrictive, but were maintained solely for health and safety purposes, and for ensuring the conformity of imported pharmaceuticals with the quality standards accepted in Armenia. All requirements and procedures were the same for both Armenian and foreign citizens or enterprises. Pursuant to the provisions of Decree 581, in order to import pharmaceutical products into the Republic of Armenia, a person must have a license for conducting trade in pharmaceutical products (an activity licence), and for a specific shipment an importer having the activity license shall obtain permission from the Ministry of Health. The procedure of granting an import permission was not discretionary or discriminatory, and did not create unjustified barriers to trade. It was aimed at checking the quality of medicines and whether those medicines were registered in Armenia, and verifying the compliance of medicines with the technical requirements adopted in Armenia. Permission for importation was issued within ten days after application.
Registration and licensing costs were as follows:
a) State duty for registering a Legal entity
1) as a private entrepreneur 3,000 AMD
2) as a Company 12,000 AMD

b) The price for acquiring a
pharmaceutical activity licence 200,000 AMD

c) The Price for each Quality test
(conducted every time on selective bases) 16,200 AMD

d) The price for a single activity 20,500 AMD
import - export permission, ( to cover the cost of issuing
the permit, document conformity assessment, document testing)
valid for a period of not more than three months.

(note: 1US$=560 AMD)

The representative of Armenia stated that the licence price in item d) covered the cost of issuing the licence.

79. The representative of Armenia further stated that any person, firm and institution wishing to apply for an import permission could do so if they possessed an appropriate license to perform pharmaceutical activities. Registration as a juridical person or sole entrepreneur was an automatic procedure, subject only to any state licensing requirement (as applicable). Applications for permissions were required to be determined within ten days of receipt of an application, although in practice permissions could be obtained within a shorter time period. If goods arrived without permission, they could only be cleared through customs upon production of the necessary import permission.

80. The representative of Armenia confirmed that a Government Decree making amendments to Government Decree No. 581 would be adopted by the Government of Armenia prior to the adoption of the Decision concerning the accession of Armenia by the WTO General Council. This Decree would change the duration of the period of validity for the import permits to one year and would permit multiple shipments by the same importers as well as facilitating testing procedures. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

81. The representative of Armenia confirmed that appropriate information for importers and exporters concerning the regulations concerning pharmaceutical products can be found on the website www.pharm.am.

82. The representative of Armenia added that to receive permission for importation of pharmaceutical products the following documents were required: an application form, a document/contract relating to the acquisition of the pharmaceutical products, a licence to trade in pharmaceutical products in Armenia, a certificate of quality issued by the producer. The importation permissions were issued after the collection of a corresponding fee. In response to further questions, the representative of Armenia stated that fee was designed to only cover the costs of the services rendered in considering the application. The amount of the fee varied from application to application according to the particular expertise called upon to consider the application.

83. The representative of Armenia said that requests for permission could be refused if (a) there was incorrect and/or insufficient information in the presented documents, (b) the minimum shelf life requirement was not met (c) the actual pharmaceuticals did not correspond to the specifications stated in the importation documents (d) the imported pharmaceuticals were not registered in Armenia or(e) the quality of imported pharmaceutical products did not correspond to quality standards accepted in the Republic of Armenia. Unjustified delays and refusal to issue permission could give rise to judicial procedures within 30 days after the refusal.

84. The representative of Armenia further noted that permissions were issued for the period necessary to carry out the engagements, but no longer than three months. The validity of a permission could be extended upon the substantiated request of an applicant. The body issuing the permission could suspend its validity or cancel it. Permissions were not transferable among importers. In response to further questions he confirmed that permissions and licenses were available to both domestic and foreign entities, provided that they were commercially registered, and that there was no difference in the requirements to obtain a licence depending on whether an applicant was domestic or foreign in origin.

85. The representative of Armenia stated that there were no agrochemicals other than fertilizers (HS 3102-3105) subject to mandatory conformity assessment (mandatory certification). Pursuant to Decree No. 124 of 19 December 1995 importation of phytoprotection chemicals (HS 38.08) should be permitted by the Ministry of Agriculture, moreover the permission for importation of phytoprotection chemicals should also be approved by the Inspection of Plant Protection office in the Ministry of Agriculture. The authority to make changes and amendments in the list of registered phytoprotection chemicals permitted to be imported was delegated to the Inspection of Plant Protection office in the Ministry of Agriculture (pending the establishment of the State Interdepartmental Committee for Registration of Phytoprotective chemicals. Imported or exported agricultural chemicals must be registered in the Republic of Armenia). According to the Rules on issuing permission on import of plant protection agents into the Republic of Armenia, to issue a permission the following documents were required: a) An application by the importer; b) a certificate of origin and quality certificate issued by the producer or an appropriate organization. Import permission for agrochemical products was given for an import transaction (for single use). Permission was given only to those agrochemicals which were included in the list of phytoprotection chemicals registered in Armenia. A permission was normally given in 24 hours after receiving permission requirement documents. A permission could be refused in case of incorrect information provided by an importer in the requirement documents. Unjustified delays and refusal to issue permission could give rise to judicial procedures, including to rights in the Code to appeal the superior body.

86. The representative of Armenia confirmed that, at the latest by the date of accession, Armenia would provide an initial notification of all laws, regulations and other procedures regulating its import licensing or permission requirements, i.e. the list of measures, the legislation and its responses to the import licensing questionnaire to the Committee on Import Licensing. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

87. The representative of Armenia confirmed that, from the date of accession, Armenia would eliminate and would not introduce, re-introduce or apply quantitative restrictions on imports or other non-tariff measures such as licensing, quotas, bans, permits, prior authorization requirements, licensing requirements, and other restrictions having equivalent effect, that cannot be justified under the provisions of the WTO Agreement. He further confirmed that the legal authority of the Government of Armenia to suspend imports and exports or to apply licensing requirements that could be used to suspend, ban, or otherwise restrict the quantity of trade would be applied from the date of accession in conformity with the requirements of the WTO, in particular Articles XI, XII, XIX, XX, and XXI of the GATT 1994, and the Multilateral trade Agreements on Agriculture, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Import Licensing Procedures, Safeguards and Technical Barriers to trade. In this regard he also stated that the same kind of requirements contained in Resolution No. 124, 29 December 1995 relating to imports would be equally applied to imports and to the purchase or sale of similar domestic products. Any exemptions from those requirements would be equally applied to imports and the output of domestic firms. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Minimum import prices
88. The representative of Armenia noted that Armenia did not maintain a system of minimum import prices.

- Customs Valuation
89. Some members of the Working Party referred to the Agreement on Customs Valuation and to certain inconsistencies of the Customs Regulations of Armenia in respect of customs valuation. Those members requested more detailed explanations with regard to the implementation by Armenia of specific provisions of the Customs Valuation Agreement, in particular Articles 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12 thereof.

90. Noting that Armenia was a member of the World Customs Organization, the representative of Armenia stated that the customs valuation regime was set out in the Procedure for the Calculation of the Customs Value of Imported Goods attached to Government Decree No. 615 of 6 December 1993, and the Law on Customs Tariffs of 18 August 1993, and, following repeal of the Law on Customs Duties, by the Customs Code which entered into force on 1 January 2001.

91. According to those Laws, the primary method for determination of the customs value was the transaction value method. The Law, as well as the Republic of Armenia’s new Customs Code, provided for the same six methods of valuation laid out in the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994. In response to further questions, the representative of Armenia stated that Paragraph 3 of Article 12 of the Law on Customs Duties provided a possibility of reversal of the order of application of the valuation methods specified in Articles 5 and 6 of the Customs Valuation Agreement upon request of an importer. This provision was included in Article 94 (Paragraph 2) of the Republic of Armenia’s new Customs Code.

92. In response to questions of some members of the Working Party concerning sales between related persons the representative of Armenia stated that provisions concerning such sales were incorporated in Articles 78 and 87 of the Customs Code. Concerning Article 11 of the Customs Valuation Agreement, Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 13 of the Law on Customs Duties, as well as Article 96 of the new Customs Code, provided for appeal procedures concerning the decisions and actions of Customs bodies as regards the customs valuation of goods. Paragraph 4 of Article 12 of the Law on the Customs Duties included provisions regarding the circumstances specified in Article 5.2 of the Valuation Agreement. The relevant provisions were incorporated in Article 91 (Paragraph 4) of the Republic of Armenia’s new Customs Code.

93. In response to further questions, the representative of Armenia noted that the concept of "price paid or payable" was covered by Paragraph 1 of Article 7 of the Law on Customs Duties adopted in December 1998, as well as by Article 81 of the Customs Code. The representative of Armenia said that in relation to Article 8 of the Customs Valuation Agreement, Article 83 of the Customs Code stipulated that the customs value should include:
the transaction value of the goods in the country of exportation;
a) transport, loading, unloading, transhipment, insurance and other related costs made in connection of the goods’ carriage up to the customs border of the Republic of Armenia;
b) commission and brokerage accrued in relation to the carriage of the goods up to customs border of the Republic of Armenia, except buying commissions;
c) the costs of the following goods and services where supplied directly or indirectly by the buyer to the supplier free of charge or at reduced cost for use in connection with the production and supply of the goods carried across the customs border of the Republic of Armenia:

i) the value of materials, components, parts and similar items incorporated in the goods;
ii) the value of tools and other similar items used in the production of the goods;
iii) the value of materials consumed in the production of the goods;
iv) the value of engineering, artwork, design work, and other similar work necessary for the production of the goods;

d) royalties and licence fees related to the sale of the goods being valued paid or payable by the buyer, either directly or indirectly, to the supplier;
e) the value of tare, packing and packaging;
f) the amounts payable to the supplier by the buyer for the further sale, use and disposal of the goods carried across the customs border of the Republic of Armenia.

94. In response to questions concerning the exchange rate applied by the Customs, the representative of Armenia stated that the exchange rate used was derived from the daily foreign exchange auctions held by the Central Bank of Armenia. The Central Bank announced exchange rates daily and these rates were published in the press, as required by Article 9.1 of the Customs Valuation Agreement. In response to questions concerning the mechanism for protection of confidential information, the representative of Armenia stated that the provisions concerning confidentiality of information were incorporated in Article 95 (Paragraph 2) of the new Customs Code in conformity with provisions of Article 10 of the Customs Valuation Agreement.

95. In response to requests for a detailed description of the process of review of the decisions made on customs valuation of goods, the representative of Armenia said that in relation to Article 11 of the Customs Valuation Agreement, paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 13 of the Law on Customs Duties provided for appeal procedures on the decisions and actions of the customs bodies. The Article provided for appeal of a decision by the customs body to a higher customs body or to a court. The higher customs body should make its decision regarding the appeal and inform the applicant about the decision within one month. Respectively, paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 96 of the new Code provided for similar appeal procedures on the decisions and actions of the customs bodies.

96. The representative of Armenia said that as required by Article 12 of the Customs Valuation Agreement, relevant national laws, regulations, decisions and rulings were published in the Bulletin of the Government of Armenia or in the Manual of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia. In relation to the obligation contained in Article 13 (last sentence) of the Customs Valuation Agreement, when the customs value of goods cannot be immediately determined, the former paragraph 11 of Article 12 of the Law on Custom Duties had provided that: when the customs bodies deemed it necessary to verify or further scrutinize the customs value declared by the applicant in the respective declaration, importers were entitled to remove their goods from customs control against a bank guarantee valid for one month, in an amount equal to the disputed amount payable, on condition of subsequent clearance in accordance with the final decision. He further noted that the new Customs Code, Article 96 (Paragraph 1), had incorporated the content of Article 12 of the Law on Customs Duties. Article 95 (Paragraph 1) of the Republic of Armenia’s Customs Code provided that the importer upon a written request should be entitled, within five working days, to receive a written explanation of the valuation decision and the valuation method used by the customs authorities.

97. The representative of Armenia stated that all the provisions of the WTO Agreement on the Implementation of Article VII of GATT 1994 would be adopted as an integral part of Armenia’s Customs Code upon Armenia’s accession to the WTO. All relevant laws would be in full conformity with the requirements of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994. In particular, a legislative amendment to Article 82 of the Customs Code enacted on 25 September 2002 stipulates that customs valuation shall be made in accordance with the Interpretative Notes to the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement. By means of a Government Decree, made pursuant to Article 82 of the Customs Code, the Interpretative Notes of the Agreement would be fully incorporated in Armenia’s customs valuation laws. As well, the Decision of 24 September 1984 on the Valuation of Carrier Media Bearing Software for Data Processing Equipment would be incorporated into the new Customs Code (Article 85, Paragraph (d)) ensuring that valuation of the software was based on the value of the media. Armenia would enact the legislation and regulations addressing these issues prior to the adoption of the Decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO. He confirmed that on 20 November 2002 the Parliament of Armenia had adopted the necessary amendments to the Customs Code, which would be enacted in law prior to the adoption by the General Council of the Decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Other customs formalities
- Rules of origin

98. The representative of Armenia stated that the rules of origin applied by Armenia followed the principles stated in the Agreement on Rules of Origin. Origin rules set forth the definitions of the goods wholly originating in one country, a change in the tariff classification of the goods, sufficient processing criteria, and the value-added criterion. The choice of a method for determining origin depended on the goods concerned and any relevant international agreement in respect of which origin rules were being applied. However, with the exception of the goods wholly originating in one country, the change in tariff heading criterion (at 4-digit level in the HS classification) was used unless an alternative was stipulated. According to the procedure of determination of the country of origin attached to Government Decree No. 615 of 6 December 1993, the country of origin was considered to be the country where entire goods had been manufactured or where they had undergone sufficient processing.

99. The representative of Armenia added that the Customs Code incorporated relevant provisions regulating the field of rules of origin. The Customs Code was in full conformity with relevant WTO provisions. In particular the precise definitions of goods that were to be considered as being wholly obtained in one country, criteria of sufficient processing in terms of change of tariff classification and the value added percentage criterion; and minimal operations or processes that did not by themselves confer origin to goods were given. According to Article 160 of the Republic of Armenia’s Customs Code the following goods should be deemed as wholly obtained in one country:
a) live animals born and raised in that country;
b) animals obtained by hunting, trapping, fishing in the territorial and internal waters of that country or by performing other similar activities;
c) produce obtained from live animals in that country;
d) plants and plant products harvested, picked or gathered in that country;
e) minerals and other naturally occurring substances not included in items (a)-(d), which are obtained from the territory, entrails or territorial and internal waters of that country;
f) waste and recoverable resources derived from manufacturing and processing operations or from consumption in that country and fit only for disposal or as raw material;
g) products obtained by fishing in neutral waters by vessels lawfully flying the flag of that country;
h) produce made from the products referred to in (g) on board of the country's factory ship;
i) products obtained on board of a spaceship owned or rented by that country pending the flight;
j) goods obtained or produced in that country solely from products referred to in items (a)-(i).

100. He further added that according to Article 161 of the Customs Code, where more than one country were concerned in the production of the good, the country of origin of a good would be the last country where the good has undergone significant processing. Criteria of significant processing were defined as:
a) the processing operations, leading to a change in the four digit classification of goods;
b) processing operations, wherein the value of incorporated materials which originate in the given country and the value add up at least 30 per cent of the ex-works price of the manufactured goods, whereas indirect taxes, commissions, transport, insurance, security and other similar costs are disregarded in the ex-works price.
In the case of goods which were classified as sets (goods in sets) or were viewed as such, paragraph 3 of Article 162 of the Customs Code provided that the origin of the goods, was the country where the set had been assembled or put together, if the overall value of the non-originating parts of the set did not exceed 45 per cent of the value of the set. According to Article 163 of the Customs Code, the following should not be deemed as criteria of sufficient processing:
a) changes made exclusively in the meaning and end use of the goods, for instance the modification of a minibus into a lorry and the like;
b) mere packaging, in any form, including bottling, wrapping and the like;
c) classification of incomplete goods under finished goods, or the classification of finished, but not assembled products under assembled products pursuant to the rules of the Harmonized System;
d) simple assembling operations, particularly, mere plugging together of units to form a good classifiable in another heading, such as the joining of a monitor, CPU, keyboard and mouse to the end of making a computer and the like;
e) the mere addition of preservatives;
f) obtaining of goods classifiable under meat and meat offal, from the goods classifiable live animals;
g) preparatory works for the sale or transportation of the goods (making into lots, sorting, wrapping and the like),
h) necessary operations for the protection, transportation and storage of the products;
i) affixing of marks, labels or other distinguishing signs of the like on products or their packaging;
j) obtaining of products through mixing of goods (components), whereas the characteristics of these products little vary from the initial characteristics of the components;
k) combination of two or more actions referred to in subparagraphs (a) to (j) above.

101. The representative of Armenia stated that Article 162 of the Customs Code set forth the sequence of application of the rules of origin. In his view, the Customs Code's, rules on rules of origin did not pursue, directly or indirectly, any trade objectives, nor create obstacles for free trade, in accordance with WTO provisions. The representative of Armenia added that the provisions of the Customs Code on rules of origin were applied to CIS imports as well as to imports of other countries and that certificates of origin were accepted for imports from CIS countries as well as from non-CIS countries. According to Article 168 of the new Customs Code the absence of a certificate of origin by itself could not be the only reason to deny the entry of the goods. Armenia would amend the Customs Code, prior to the adoption by the General Council of the Decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO, to bring the provisions of Article 167 (Paragraph 2) of the Customs Code into full compliance with the requirements of Article 2(h) and Annex II, paragraph 3(d) of the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin. Article 169 contained provisions on appeal against actions, inactivity and decisions of the State bodies and the officials thereof in relation to the determination and confirmation of the country of origin. That Article also provided that the declarant might apply to the Superior Bodies or to court, if it did not agree with the method of determination or confirmation of the country of origin of the goods. The Superior Body was required to hear and determine the request within one month and notify the applicant.

102. The representative of Armenia confirmed that from the date of accession its laws and regulations on rules of origin would be in conformity with provisions of the Agreement on Rules of Origin and other WTO provisions including the requirements of Article 2(h) and Annex II, paragraph 3(d). In this regard, he also confirmed that for non-preferential and preferential rules of origin, respectively, the relevant Armenian authorities, or preshipment inspection authority acting on their behalf, would provide, upon request of an exporter, importer or any person with a justifiable cause, an assessment of the origin of the import and outline the terms under which it will be provided. According to the provisions of the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin specified above, any request for such an assessment would be accepted even before trade in the goods concerned began, and any such assessment would be binding for three years. He confirmed that on 20 November 2002 the Parliament of Armenia had adopted the necessary amendments to fully implement these provisions, which would be enacted in law prior to the adoption by the General Council of the Decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Pre-shipment inspection
103. In response to questions, the representative of Armenia stated that while the Government of Armenia had announced an international tender to submit competitive bids for selecting a company in charge of implementing pre-shipment inspection to imports from all directions in 1998, no agreement was ever signed. The representative of Armenia further noted that the Government of Armenia currently did not see any reason or need to employ pre-shipment inspection companies. and noted that pre-shipment inspection was not in place in Armenia.

104. The representative of Armenia confirmed that his Government would ensure that the operation of any future pre-shipment inspection system program would be applied in conformity with the requirements of the WTO Agreement, in particular the Agreement on Pre-shipment Inspection, the recommendations of the Working Party on Pre-shipment Inspection of 2 December 1997 and any subsequent recommendations issued by that Working Party, the Agreement on the Implementation of Article VII (the Customs Valuation Agreement), and the Agreements on Import Licensing Procedures, Rules of Origin, Implementation of Article VI (Anti-dumping), Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM), Technical Barriers to trade, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Safeguards, and Agriculture. Armenia would ensure that any private firm performing customs duties covered by WTO rules would publish their practices and procedures as required by GATT Article X, that ruling by the firm would be advisory only to the Government of Armenia and would be appealable to the Government and to the judiciary, that any rulings of general applicability would be made available to WTO members and to importers and exporters upon request, and that Armenia would, upon request of WTO Members, meet to discuss the activities of such firms and their impact on trade with a view to resolving problems. The representative of Armenia stated that any pre-shipment inspection system would be temporary until such time as the Armenian customs authorities would be able to carry out these functions properly. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguards regimes
105. In response to questions, concerning whether Armenia had at present an anti-dumping, countervailing or safeguards regime, the representative of Armenia stated that a draft Law on Anti-Dumping had been submitted to the National Assembly for adoption. Safeguard Measures had been established by the adoption of the Law on Protection of the Domestic Market (Safeguard Measures of 18 April 2001). The Law on Protection of Economic Competition had also been adopted (16 November 2000), the purpose of which was to protect and promote economic competition and to ensure an appropriate environment for fair competition. These legislative acts have been drafted in full conformity with the relevant WTO provisions, including Articles VI and XIX of the GATT 1994 and the Agreements on the Implementation of Article VI, the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and the Agreement on Safeguards.

106. The representative of Armenia confirmed that from the date of accession Armenia would not apply any anti-dumping, countervailing or safeguard measures until it had implemented and notified to the WTO appropriate laws in conformity with the provisions of the WTO Agreements on the Implementation of Article VI, on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, and on Safeguards. After such legislation was implemented and notified, Armenia would apply any anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties and safeguard measures in full conformity with the these Agreements and other relevant WTO provisions. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Export regulations
- Export restrictions and export licensing system
107. The representative of Armenia stated that the Resolution No. 124, 29 December 1995 on Non-Tariff Regulation of Commodities (Operations, Services) Imported and Exported from the Republic of Armenia regulated Armenia’s non-tariff measures on export, and operated as a form of non-automatic export licensing. The export permission required by Armenia for export of certain goods was justified under WTO provisions, eg., Articles XI, XX or XXI of the GATT 1994. Automatic export licences were also required for textiles (to the European Communities only). The export licences on textiles were required pursuant to an agreement with the European Communities, but no restrictions on these exports were currently in place. For medicines, and for certain live animals and plants, permission of the relevant authorities was required. The permission for medicines, live animals and plants were generally not restrictive - rather, they were designed to ensure public health and safety. The exportation and importation of weapons; military technology and the consumables necessary for its production; technologies equipment and locators of nuclear materials (including heating materials); special non-nuclear materials and services related to it; and ionizing radiation sources were carried out through authorization issued by the Government of the Republic of Armenia. All other products could be freely exported from Armenia. The system applied to exports to all destinations, except in the case of the licensing requirement for exports of textiles and clothing to the European Union. The permission requirements were not intended to restrict the quantity or value of exports. Rather, they were intended to protect the national interest and human, animal or plant life or health, and the environment. The representative of Armenia stated that the Government did not consider that at this time, a better way existed of achieving these objectives.

108. The representative of Armenia noted that Armenia’s non-tariff regulation system on export closely paralleled that applied to imports. As on the import side, exportation of pharmaceuticals and rare animals and plants were subject to non-restrictive regulation, designed to protect health and the environment. Export permission procedures for pharmaceutical products were the same as import permission procedures, and were regulated by the same Resolutions. Permissions were required for exports of rare objects or artifacts considered part of the national heritage. In addition, exports of textiles and clothing to the European Communities were subject to licensing under a bilateral agreement with the European Communities. The licensing of textile and clothing exports to the European Communities allowed these items to be monitored, but they were not currently subject to restrictions of any kind.

109. The representative of Armenia said that Armenia maintained export permission requirements on the following items:

Table Eight

	HS number
Objects considered part of national heritage
Pharmaceutical products, medicines	051000; 1211; 2941; 3001; 3002; 3003; 3004; 3005; 300630 000; 300650 000; 300660; 380840; 1108*; 1301; 1302; 1504; 152000 000; 1702; 1804; 1805; 2207; 2209; 2501; 2520; 2712; 2801-2802; 280440 000; 281000 000; 284700 000; 285100; 2904-2909; 2912-2940; 2942; 3301
Rare wild animals and plants included in the Red Book of the Republic of Armenia

The Red Book of the Republic of Armenia identified approximately one hundred rare animals and birds, and 390 rare plants, in respect of which permissions would be required and whose exportation could be controlled.

110. The representative of Armenia stated that according to the Resolution No. 581, the exportation of pharmaceutical products and medicine had to be permitted by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia. According to Resolution No. 124, the exportation of rare wild animals and plants included in the Red Book of the Republic of Armenia was carried out through permissions issued by the Ministry of Nature and the Environment. Exports of objects considered of interest to the national heritage must be authorised by the Ministry of Culture. In the case of textile and clothing exports to the European Communities, the Ministry of trade and Economic Development would have exclusive responsibility for issuing export licences. The exportation of pharmaceuticals and/or medicines could be refused if (a) there was incorrect and/or insufficient information in the presented documents, (b) the period of validity of the pharmaceutical products was exceeded, (c) the actual pharmaceuticals and (or) medicines did not correspond to the specifications stated in the importation documents, (d) the pharmaceuticals were not registered in Armenia, (e) the quality of the pharmaceutical products did not correspond to quality standards accepted in the Republic of Armenia. Unjustified delays and refusal to issue permission could give rise to judicial procedures. The Ministry of trade and Economic Development could deny an export licence to an applicant in respect of exports to the European Communities if exports of the items concerned were to exceed a certain quantitative limitation. Since this has not occurred so far, Armenia has not developed any mechanisms for administering export quotas.

111. The representative of Armenia said that any persons, firms and institutions wishing to apply for an export licence could do so provided they were registered as a juridical person or a sole entrepreneur undertaking a business activity in Armenia. As in the case of the importation of pharmaceutical products, to receive permission for exportation of pharmaceutical products the following documents were required: an application form, a certificate relating to the acquisition of the pharmaceutical products, a licence to trade in pharmaceutical products in Armenia, documents relating to the acquisition and sale of pharmaceutical products (contract, invoice, etc.), and a certificate of quality issued by the producer. Permissions were issued within ten days from the date of the application. Since the ten-day stipulation was a maximum period, in practice permission could be obtained within a shorter period. An export permission would generally not be granted immediately upon request, but in practice the necessary procedures could be completed within a day or two. The fee for an export permission was equal one month’s minimum salary in the Republic of Armenia. Permissions were not transferable among exporters. A permission application and/or an exportation could be made at any time during the year. Permissions were issued for a period of three months. The refusal of permission for exportation could give rise to judicial procedures.

112. The representative of Armenia confirmed that any export licensing requirements or other export control requirements would be applied in conformity with WTO provisions including those contained in Articles XI, XVII, XX and XXI of the GATT 1994. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Other measures
113. The representative of Armenia noted that in order to prevent exports at artificially low prices, or the under-invoicing of exports, the Resolution 124 had established a list of minimum prices each quarter for a list of selected commodities as a reference base for tax purposes. The reference prices had been equally applied to all export destinations. With effect from 29 December 1995, this list only covered ferrous and non-ferrous metals, (HS 72.00, 72.04, 74.0 74.14. 75. 76.0 76.14, 78.80, 81.01, 81.13). According to Resolution 124 commodities of the mentioned list could be exported at prices less than the minimum established prices. However, the corporate tax liabilities of firms that export ferrous and non-ferrous metals and scrap were calculated on the basis of these reference prices if the declared export price was below the reference amount. In this case the exporter was required also to present the certificate of conformity of the Agency of Standardization Measurement and Certification (SARM). The Customs Bodies of the Republic of Armenia were required to inform the Tax Inspectorate about the transaction within a month. At a later stage, the representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that on 21 April 1999, the list of minimum reference prices was eliminated.

- Export subsidies
114. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia did not offer export incentives or export subsidies of any kind at the present time. The Government believed that export expansion was vital to Armenia’s future economic viability. For this reason, consideration was being given to various ways of stimulating exports, particularly through promotional activities. The Government did not, however, intend to rely on export subsidies as part of an export expansion program. Export promotion measures currently related mainly to the establishment and development of appropriate institutions infrastructure such as the Armenian Development Agency, which could support the business community by providing such services as arranging trade fairs, promoting Armenia in the international scene, provision of market information, conducting research activities aimed at identifying sectors and products with export potential, etc.

115. The representative of Armenia confirmed that the Government did not maintain subsidies which met the definition of a prohibited subsidy, within the meaning of Article 3 of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, and did not seek transitions to provide for the progressive elimination of such measures within a fixed period of time. He further stated that Armenia would not introduce such prohibited subsidies in the future, and would apply export promotion measures in conformity with WTO requirements. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Internal policies affecting trade in goods
- Industrial policy, including subsidies
116. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia’s industrial policy aimed to ensure more efficient use of domestic resources within a market-oriented framework. A central policy objective affecting industry was privatization. Approximately 76 per cent of formerly public-owned enterprises in Armenia were privatized and 24 per cent remained under State control. At the end of 2001 the total number of legal entities existing in the Republic of Armenia was about 45,000, of which only 39 were wholly state-owned enterprises (100 per cent of the stock belonging to the State). In response to questions the representative of Armenia stated that pending completion of the privatization program, the Government required State-owned enterprises to operate according to market principles. Enterprises in Armenia were required to acquire their inputs on the open market. Most firms had not yet put proper market economy accounting systems into use, but they were developing them. In response to requests for information concerning the payment of direct subsidies, the representative of Armenia stated that since the beginning of 1995, almost no direct subsidies have been granted to industry. In previous years direct subsidies had been provided on a fairly large scale via concessionary credits to firms. He further noted that the Government in general did not retain production subsidies in the industrial sector.

117. The representative of Armenia said that the only beneficiaries of direct subsidies in 1995 were the firms engaged in the production of strategic (military) equipment, for whom subsidies were granted for further construction and the equipping of plant. The beneficiary firms did not export their products. Any remaining indirect subsidies that might arise as a result of clearing arrangements were disappearing because of the contraction (and eventual elimination) of inter-governmental clearing contracts. The procurement via State orders, which could also entail indirect subsidies, was being replaced by competitive tendering procedures, however, the Government maintained the freedom to grant certain privileges to domestic bidders. In 1998 the Government recommenced the practice of write-offs of tax fine arrears in order to support the rehabilitation and restructuring of a few selected large enterprises, such as Armenmotor Company and Yerevan Jewellery Plant. For analogous purposes, tax fine arrears were written off for those enterprises which incurred indebtedness because of default against shipments being made within the framework of inter-governmental clearing contracts and procurements via State orders.

118. The representative of Armenia further added that because the continuing reform of policies might indirectly confer subsidies on industries, the Government also maintained a substantially deregulated business environment which, when combined with the Government's open investment policies, meant that there were effectively no barriers to market contestability. Firms were free to enter and exit sectors on the basis of their own market-based decisions. Additional measures designed to safeguard and strengthen this business environment were the establishment of anti-monopoly and bankruptcy laws. The Law on the Bankruptcy of Banks and the Law on the Bankruptcy of Juridical Persons, of Enterprises Without the Status of a Juridical Person, and of Entrepreneurs entered into force respectively on 1 October 1996 and on 1 March 1997.

119. The representative of Armenia confirmed that his Government would administer any subsidy programmes in full conformity with the Agreement on Subsidies and countervailing Measures from the date of its accession to the WTO. All necessary information on such programmes would be notified to the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures in accordance with Article 25 of the Agreement upon entry into force of Armenia's Protocol of Accession. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Technical Barriers to trade
120. The representative of Armenia noted that, after independence, Armenia took steps to establish and develop its national systems of standardization, metrology and certification. Relevant laws regulating those systems were the Law on Standardization and Certification and the Law on Uniformity of Measurements accepted by the National Assembly on 30 April 1997. The Law on Standardization and Certification provided the legal basis in the Republic of Armenia for the standardization as well as certification of products, services, labour (processes) and quality systems. This was applicable to the bodies of State governance, enterprises, institutions and private entrepreneurs and defined the means for the protection of interests of consumers and the State through the elaboration and application of normative documents on standardization. It also defined the rights, obligations and responsibility of the participants in the certification process.

121. He further noted that the Law on Uniformity of Measurements defined the legal basis for ensuring the uniformity of measurements, regulated the relations of the bodies of State governance with enterprises, institutions and private entrepreneurs on issues relating to the production and issuance of measurement instruments, and the use and repairs thereof. It was directed at protecting the rights and rightful interests of consumers and the State from the negative impact of inaccurate results of measurements. The Department for Standardization, Metrology and Certification (SARM) was the coordinator of standardization, meteorological and certification activities in Armenia, and its rights and obligations were defined by the Law on Standardization and Certification and the Law on Uniformity of Measurements. Being the national body in charge of the administration related to standardization, certification and meteorology in Armenia, its responsibilities included the creation and administration of national standardization and certification systems; the adoption of national standards and classifiers; the application of international standards; the publication of official information in the fields of standardization and certification; accreditation of certification bodies and testing laboratories; dealing with appeals and disputes on certification matters, etc.

122. He further added that SARM was presided over by the State Chief Inspector, whose rights and obligations were contained in Article 23 of the Law on Conformity Assessment and Article 24 of the Law on Uniformity of Measurements. SARM was a collegial body that took decisions by majority vote. In order to further strengthen the compliance of Armenia’s legislation with the principles of the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to trade two new laws were adopted by the National Assembly on 9 December 1999: the Law on Standardization and the Law on Conformity Assessment of Products and Services to the Normative Requirements (hereinafter Law on Conformity Assessment). Governmental Decree No. 9 of 11 January 2000 on Preparation, Adoption and Application of Technical Regulations was also adopted. In his view, the definitions of standards and technical regulations in these acts were in full compliance with the respective definitions in Annex 1 to the TBT Agreement. According to the Law on Standardization, implementation of standards was voluntary. Standards become mandatory if they are referred to in technical regulations by exclusive reference which include those developed and maintained by agencies and Ministries other than SARM, e.g. the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture. Relevant Ministries should be responsible for the preparation of technical regulations according to the Law on Standardization. Technical regulations shall be enacted within a reasonable interval of at least six months after their promulgation, as provided for in the Understanding contained in the Decisions and Recommendations of the WTO TBT Committee (G/TBT/1/Rev.8) and notified to the WTO.

123. In response to further questions, the representative of Armenia stated that the non-discrimination principle, as it concerns the treatment of domestic and foreign products and services, as well as the principle of equivalency with the regulations of other countries was reflected in Decree No. 9, of 11 January 2000. Equivalent technical regulations from other countries could be incorporated into Armenian legislation to establish corresponding authorities which were responsible for setting up mandatory requirements for products and services. Only valid international standards, recommendations and guides, or final drafts should be taken into account when elaborating national standards and regulations. The Law on Conformity Assessment regulated the activities for voluntary and compulsory conformity assessment of production, goods, labours and services to normative requirements. The Law also established the legal basis for State activity in that field, as well as determined the modalities for conformity assessment, conditions of product marketing and the rights and obligations of parties to conformity assessment. The three Laws currently in force (the Law on Standardization, the Law on Conformity Assessment, the Law on the Uniformity of Measurements) serve as the legal basis for the development of QSMCA (Quality Standardization, Metrology and Conformity Assessment) policy, pursued by SARM.

124. He further added that the main principles of this policy were:
- harmonization of legislation in the field of standardization, metrology and conformity assessment,
- ensuring the safety of products, processes and services through State regulating mechanisms (technical regulations),
- harmonization of national standards with international, regional and interstate ones,
- direct implementation of ISO/IEC, ASTM, ASME, and European (EN) standards and technical regulations for mandatory requirements in the field of conformity assessment,
- widening the scope of cooperation with international organizations,
- improvement of relevant accreditation systems to comply with international rules and procedures,
- providing uniformity of measurement through State regulation mechanisms,
- facilitating the removal of unnecessary barriers to trade, and
- ensuring the protection of consumers' rights.
SARM cooperated with other agencies and Ministries, including those of Health and Agriculture in matters relating to sanitary and phytosanitary measures and other requirements requiring standards and technical regulations.

125. The representative of Armenia added that the National Standardization System was established with a mission to provide:
- the safety of products, labour (processes) and services to protect the natural environment, human life, health and property;
- the technical and informative compatibility and inter-changeability of products;
- the improvement in quality of products, labour and services;
- uniformity of measurements;
- preservation of resources;
- the security of economic objects, in the event of the occurrence of technical and other disasters and emergencies;
- the removal of technical barriers to trade;
- the essential conditions for the state of defence and mobilization readiness.

126. The representative of Armenia noted that the National Standards Institute (CJSC) was established under the SARM to perform standardization activities. The main provisions of that system and its procedures for preparation, adoption and application of Armenian standards were established by national basic standards of the AST 1 series. About 230 Armenian standards had been developed by the technical committees and adopted by SARM since 1993. The majority of the standards applied in Armenia were international and regional standards. More than 18,000 interstate standards of CIS countries are included in the national fund of standards. Fifty per cent of national standards would be aligned to international standards by the end of 2002. The National Standards Institute publishes a quarterly guide "Standards and Specifications", which provides current information on technical regulations and specifications and issues relating to standardization. A Working Party member said that Armenia should provide a source of information on technical regulations, specifications and issues related to standardization that was more accessible to interested parties, e.g. a monthly journal or internet website, in order to provide sufficient flexibility to allow Armenia to effectively comply with requirements in TBT Articles 2 and 5 to publish notice of proposed technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures.

127. The representative of Armenia said that according to Article 18 of the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Standardization” and Article 25 of the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Conformity Assessment of Products and Services to the Normative Requirements”, technical regulations shall be developed and approved to replace existing mandatory standards to the extent required. After 31 December 2004, all mandatory standards will expire. With that end in view the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No. 852, 22 December 2000 “On approval of the schedule for the development of technical regulations in relevant fields in the Republic of Armenia within 2001-2004”, approved the list of technical regulations to be developed and authorities responsible for their development. To date (July 2002), 20 technical regulations had been approved and 86 technical regulations were being developed, which amounted to 30 per cent of total number of technical regulations to be developed by 31 December 2004. According to Article 13, paragraph 2 of the Law "On Standardization" national standards are voluntary. According to Article 2, paragraph C of the same Law, the requirements established by technical regulations are mandatory. In the month of August 2002, a draft Government Decree was prepared to amend the provisions of Government Decree No 9 of 11 January 2000 that would be enacted upon accession. According to the amendment, six months shall be allowed following publication of a technical regulation before its entry into force. According to Article 14, paragraph 1 of the "Law on Standardization", information on technical regulations adopted or being developed shall be published by SARM once a month in the publication "Information bulletin for technical regulations" in draft form at the early stage of development, and all interested parties would have the opportunity to comment on the proposed technical regulation before it became final. The fee schedule for mandatory certification is set out in Order No. 91 of the Minister of Finance and Economy of the Republic of Armenia dated 20 March 2001.

128. He further noted that the following were priorities in the field of standardization activities:
- establishment of quality and environment management systems’ normative base in compliance with international standards,
- development of standards in the fields of military industry,
- standardization in the field of conservation of resources in fuel power engineering systems,
- standardization of information technologies in compliance with international standards,
- improvement of national metering standards base,
- personnel training and qualification improvement.
Priorities in the field of conformity assessment were:
- quality system introduction according to the requirements of ISO 9000 series standards, which would be applied on a voluntary basis as required by WTO provisions,
- environmental management system introduction according to the requirements of ISO 14000 series standards, which would be applied on a voluntary basis as required by WTO provisions,
- reduction of the list of products subject to mandatory conformity assessment,
- development of the process of conformity assessment results mutual and unilateral recognition,
- harmonization of conformity assessment rules and regulations with international requirements,
- cooperation with internationally recognized organizations and companies in the field of conformity assessment,
- improvement of accreditations system according to international requirements,
- development of systemized privatization procedures, certification bodies and test laboratories.
For the preparation, adoption and application of standards, SARM would follow the TBT Code of Good Practice and would sign it from the date of Armenia’s accession to WTO. SARM was cooperating with standards organizations in other countries and was a member of the International Organization ISO for Standardization from 1 January 1997. Presently SARM was a member of ISO and EASC, which enabled Armenia to participate through technical committees in the elaboration of international and regional standards and to apply these standards in Armenia. According to Government Resolution, SARM was nominated as the inquiry point. The address of the inquiry point was:

Department for Standardization, Metrology and Certification
under the Government of the Republic of Armenia
Komitasa ave, 49/2
375051, Yerevan
Republic of Armenia
Tel: 3741 235 861
Fax: 3741 285 620
Email: armstandard@sarm.am, press@sarm.am

As stated in paragraph 5 of Government Decree No. 9 of 11 January 2000, the Republic of Armenia will provide information on technical regulations in accordance with Article 2.9.2 of the TBT Agreement to the other Members via the Secretariat. The notification activities were taken over since 1 January 2001 by a public institution, the WTO Notification Centre in the Republic of Armenia'. whose activities are described in paragraph 216.

129. In response to questions concerning mandatory certification the representative of Armenia stated that the Law On Conformity Assessment of Products and Services to the Normative Requirements provided the legal basis for the conformity assessment of products, services, labour (processes) and quality systems. It defined the rights, obligations and responsibility of the participants in the conformity assessment process. The conformity assessment mechanisms were fixed in that Law. The use of less expensive and less trade restrictive methods of conformity assessment, as manufacturer’s declarations and conformity marks were also included in the Law. According to the Law, a certificate on conformity and a registered declaration on conformity had the same legal authority, and domestic and foreign manufacturers and service providers were granted similar rights in applying declarations on the conformity of products or services. Mandatory certification activities are coordinated by SARM and conducted by the accredited certification bodies and testing laboratories.

130. He further noted that the procedure for accreditation of certification bodies and testing laboratories had been established in Decree No. 238 of 12 May 2000. According to the Decree accreditation was carried out by the Council for Accreditation of Certification Bodies and Testing Laboratories in the field of Conformity Assessment. Local and foreign bodies and laboratories had the same rights to be accredited in the National System for conformity assessment. Requirements to certification bodies and testing laboratories had to correspond to ISO/IEC 17025 and EN 45011, EN 45012, EN 45002. Taking into consideration the need to control the safety of certain products, labour and services for the protection of the national environment and human life and health, as well as the protection of consumer rights, some products were subject to mandatory conformity assessment according to Resolution No. 239 of 12 May 2000. Those products were selected taking into consideration the reports received from the inspection bodies, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Sanitary-Anti-epidemiological State Center, consumers, and based also on the data of research institutes and laboratories. Requirements for products covered by mandatory conformity assessment in Armenia were kept to the minimum. Mandatory certification procedures were the same for both imported and domestic products. Certificates were issued for product types based on testing of samples, analysis of production systems, quality system certification or declaration of suppliers depending on the scheme of certification. The fees for the issuance of certificates were based solely upon the costs of the tests required and not upon the value of the goods. These internationally accepted certification schemes were fixed by AST 5.3.

131. The representative of Armenia also stated that pursuant to the Law on Conformity Assessment, recognition of foreign certificates on conformity or conformity marks for products was made by bilateral agreement of the Republic of Armenia on mutual recognition of conformity assessment results or unilateral recognition. Those procedures were regulated by Resolution No. 247 of 18 May 2000 of the Government of the Republic of Armenia. According to the Resolution, in the absence of mutual recognition agreement a decision on unilateral recognition of conformity was made by SARM. Procedures on recognition of certificates issued by foreign certification bodies are regulated by Resolution No. 247 of 18 May 2000 of the Government. According to Decree No. 247 of 18 May 2000, in considering the acceptability of foreign certificates and conformity marks, the Council would take into consideration the availability of a conformity assessment system, and the conformity to international standards of the process of accreditation of certification bodies and testing bodies, in the exporting country. Local and foreign bodies and laboratories had the same rights to be accredited in the National System for conformity assessment. In August 2002, a Government Decree was prepared to amend the provisions of Government Decree No 247 of 18 May 2000. According to the amendment, the recognition of foreign certificates and marks of conformity will be made by the Council for Accreditation of Certification Bodies and Testing Laboratories in the Field of Conformity Assessment, according to the rules for mutual of unilateral recognition of foreign certificates and conformity marks established by Decree No. 247 of 18 May 2000 on a non-discriminatory basis and based on technical considerations only. Based on this legislation and on additional legislation, as necessary, Armenia was pledged to accept, inter alia, and on a non-discriminatory basis, applications for accreditation from conformity assessment bodies located in other WTO Members, conformity assessment results from qualifying bodies, and other means of recognition of equivalent procedures. In considering the acceptability of foreign certificates and conformity marks, the Council would take in to consideration the availability of a conformity assessment system, and the conformity to international standards of the process of accreditation of certification bodies and testing bodies, in the exporting country. The amendment would take effect on the date of accession.

132. He further noted that SARM had signed cooperation agreements on mutual recognition of conformity assessments with appropriate bodies of several countries such as Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. SARM was carrying out negotiations with appropriate bodies of other countries, particularly with Bulgaria, China, India, Iran, Romania, the Slovak Republic and the United States, to sign similar agreements on cooperation. In the absence of agreements on mutual recognition, Resolution No. 247 of 16 May 2000, allowed for simplified procedures on acceptance of certificates and conformity marks issued by certification bodies of other countries, if the Armenian authorities were satisfied that conformity assessment procedures in those countries offered adequate assurance of conformity, and the safety requirements and norms conformed to those in force in Armenia.

133. In response to requests from members of the Working Party, the representative of Armenia stated that a list of products subject to mandatory conformity assessment were approved by Decree No. 239 of 12 May, with amendments approved by Decree No. 110 of 17 February 2001, Decree No. 297 of 12 April 2001 and Decree No. 825 of 6 September 2001. The list of above-mentioned products is given in Annex I to this Report. He noted that the following technical regulations had entered into force:
- The Indexes of Safety, Methods of Testing of Internal Combustion Engine Fuels and Requirements of Ensuring Safety in Phases of Their Maintenance, Handling, Realization and Usage and of Environment Conservation, approved by Order of SARM on 15 June 2001. Those Indexes defined quality indexes characterising the safety requirements for automobile petroleum, diesel and other engine fuels, as well as requirements on ensuring safety in the phases of fuel maintenance, handling, realisation and usage and on environment conservation. The requirements for automobile petroleum, diesel and other engine fuels were required to be included in their normative and technical documentation.
- Decree No. 41 of 15 January 2001 of the Government of the Republic of Armenia on Establishing Safety Requirements to Condensed Explosive Products. The Decree sets a regulation for the condensed explosive products to meet the requirements defined in established national standards.
- AST 214-2001: Condensed Explosive Products. General Safety Requirement.
- GOST R 51271-99: Condensed Explosive Products. Method of Certification Test.
134. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that the following legislative acts related to Technical Barriers to trade were adopted and enacted in the Republic of Armenia:

Table Nine

Legislative Act	Date of enactment
Law on Conformity Assessment of Products and Services to the Normative Requirements	03.12.99
Law on Standardization	03.12.99
Law on Uniformity of Measurements	30.4.97

135. The representative of Armenia confirmed that from the date of accession, Armenia would accept conformity assessment certificates issued by internationally recognized authorities of exporting countries with which Armenia had signed mutual recognition Agreements, or approvals provided by recognized independent conformity assessment bodies or agencies recognized by the Council for Accreditation of Certification Bodies and Testing Laboratories in the Field of Conformity Assessment. He further confirmed that after 31 December 2004, only those imports subject to technical regulations developed in accordance with Armenia's standardisation regime and WTO provisions would be subject to mandatory certification. Upon request of WTO Members, Armenia would meet to discuss these measures and their impact upon trade with a view to resolving problems. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

136. The representative of Armenia confirmed that Armenia would apply the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to trade from the date of accession without recourse to any transition period, and would sign and follow the Code of Good Practice for the preparation, adoption and application of standards from the date of Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
137. The representative of Armenia informed the Working party that the following legislative acts related to Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures were enacted in the Republic of Armenia:

Table Ten

Legislative Act	Date of Enactment
Armenian Law on Veterinary	26.10.99 by National Assembly
Armenian Law on Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine	20.3.2000 by National Assembly
Armenian Law on Food Safety	08.12.99 by National Assembly

138. The representative of Armenia stated added that SARM cooperated with the Ministries of Health and Agriculture in matters relating to sanitary and phytosanitary measures. Having the objective to protect human health, safety and environment, the Government of Armenia had introduced a list of goods, some of which fell within the scope of the SPS Agreement, subject to mandatory certification (Resolution 15 of 16 June 1998, replaced by Resolution No. 239 of 12 May 2000, with amendments). In his view this was evidence of the fact that Armenia had started the process of elaboration of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. In 1996, the National Assembly adopted the Law on State Agrarian Inspections. The law defined the legal, economic and organisation principles of State Agrarian Inspections in the Republic of Armenia. In particular, Articles 6 and 7 of the Law outlined the activities of the State Inspection Service of the Ministry of Agriculture, concerning cultivation of lands, use of fertilizers, the struggle against plant diseases, insects and weeds, transportation of toxic substances and mineral fertilizers, conditions of conservation and destruction, as well as livestock breeding with respect to veterinary services. According to Resolution No.17 of the Government (11 March 1998) the "National Agrarian Rules" were established. Those Rules dealt with the protection of the population from diseases common to man and animals, the prevention and eradication of contagious and non-contagious animal diseases, transportation, conservation, use and destruction of veterinary medicaments and disinfectants. The list of plant pests, weeds and diseases of quarantine significance for the Republic of Armenia was also established by this Resolution. He noted that Armenia accepted the SPS measures of other WTO Members as equivalent to their own, even if those measure were different, if it had been demonstrated that the alternative measures achieve an acceptable level of SPS protection.

139. He further added that for the implementation of the Law on State Agrarian Inspections, a Law on Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine, as well as a Law on Veterinary have been established. The Law on Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine defined the legal, economic and organisation principles of the State Services of Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine of the Republic of Armenia, and regulated relations between farms, enterprises, organizations and individuals within the Republic of Armenia. The Law regulated phytosanitary controls during importation/exportation of plants or products of plant origin. The main concepts and requirements of the International Plant Protection Convention were taken into account in the Law. The Law also permitted the taking into consideration of the phytosanitary conditions and requirements of an importing country when issuing phytosanitary certificates. The Law on Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine was enacted on 20 March 2000.

140. The Law on Veterinary Medicine defined the legal, economic and organisation principles of the State Service of Veterinary Medicine of the Republic of Armenia, fixed the regulation for the prevention of diseases of animals, for the protection of the population from diseases common to man and animals, and provided the population with quality products according to veterinary and sanitary conditions. The law regulated relations between the State body in charge of veterinary medicine and enterprises, organizations, entrepreneurs, and individuals in the Republic of Armenia. The law established procedures of state veterinary inspection during importation/exportation of animals and products of animal origin. Armenia had been a member of the International Epizootic Office since December 1997 and followed guidance and standards of that organization. In his view, both Laws were compatible with the requirements of the SPS Agreement.

141. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that Armenia was a member of the International Codex Alimentarius Commission and would follow its standards and guidance in establishing procedures on food safety.

142. He further noted that a critical document in Armenia's sanitary rules and norms system was the so called SanPins (Sanitary and Hygienic Rules and Norms), issued by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia. The SanPins established limits on the amounts of toxic compounds, additives, contaminants in the food and foodstuffs and were based on scientific data and risk assessments conducted by research institutes. The Food Safety Law provided stabilization relating to food activities, particularly concerning the production and reproduction, importing, exporting, exchanging, keeping, packaging, selling as well as usage of products. He confirmed that these requirements are developed based on sound scientific principles and maintained based on scientific evidence.

143. The representative of Armenia confirmed that upon accession to the WTO, Armenia would apply its sanitary and phytosanitary requirements consistently with the requirements of the WTO Agreement, including the Agreements on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and Import Licensing Procedures without recourse to any transition period. Relevant WTO provisions would be applied should Armenia decide to establish a system of plant and animal surveillance to detect plant and animal diseases. The Working Party took note of this commitment.
- trade-Related Investment Measures (trIMs)
144. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia did not maintain measures that were not in conformity with the Agreement on trade Related Investment Measures and would apply the trIMs Agreement from the date of accession without recourse to any transitional period. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- State trading Enterprises
145. The representative of Armenia stated that the State monopoly over foreign trade of the Former Soviet Union was abolished in 1989, and was replaced by a registration requirement for the conduct of such activity. By a decree of the President of the Republic of 4 January 1992 entitled On Foreign Economic Activity, all enterprises registered and operating in the Republic of Armenia, regardless of their form of ownership, had the right to conduct foreign economic activity, and are not subject to any additional registration requirements.

146. Some members of the Working Party stated that, in their view, certain telecoms enterprises were engaged in State-trading pursuant to Article XVII of the GATT 1994. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that, based on the definition of State trading set out in the Interpretation of Article XVII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and trade 1994, Armenia maintained one State trading enterprise in the telecommunications sector. Basic telecommunication services, mobile and international data transmission and value-added services had been reserved to Armentel, a joint-stock company owned by the Government of Armenia and a foreign private supplier, in exchange for commitments by Armentel to develop Armenia’s telecommunications infrastructure.

147. In response to questions whether Armenia intended to report its State monopoly of natural gas distribution under Article XVII, the representative of Armenia replied that Armgas had not been granted exclusive or special rights or privileges in the market for natural gas distribution. The Armenian network of gas distribution was privatised, resulting in the establishment of "ArmRusGasArd" CSC. This did not prevent any other entity with majority private ownership from purchasing gas or from involvement in gas distribution. A Member was of the opinion that notwithstanding its ownership characteristics, as the sole provider and trader of gas in Armenia, Armgas was a State trading enterprise. This Member sought information about this firm and other gas suppliers. The representative of Armenia said that the "ArmRusGasArd" was the main gas supplier. The "ArmRusGazArd" company was owned by ArmGaz (45%), GazProm (45%) and ITERA Company (10%). There were a number of retail gas suppliers whose prices were related to market conditions.

148. The representative of Armenia confirmed that his Government would apply its laws and regulations governing the trading activities of State-owned enterprises and other enterprises with special or exclusive privileges and would otherwise act in full conformity with the provisions of the WTO Agreements, in particular Article XVII of the GATT 1994 and the Understanding on that Article; and Article VIII of the GATS. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Free zones, special economic zones

149. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia did not maintain any free trade zones in which special duty privileges of any kind were granted. Armenia had, however, established a Frontier trade Area in the Meghri Region, on the border with Iran. The Frontier trade Area was established to promote trade between Armenia and Iran. Under the arrangement, Armenian enterprises were encouraged to establish a presence in the border area and Iranian enterprises were encouraged to do the same on their side of the frontier. Forty citizens from each country were entitled to freely enter each other’s border areas in order to explore business and trading opportunities, but no special customs regime or privileged duty treatment was associated with any exchanges agreed on the basis of these contacts.

150. The representative of Armenia confirmed that if Armenia established any free zones or special economic areas, it would administer any such areas in compliance with WTO provisions, including those addressing subsidies, trIMs and trIPS and that goods produced in these zones under tax and tariff provisions that exempt imports and imported inputs from tariffs and certain taxes would be subject to normal customs formalities when entering the rest of Armenia including the application of tariffs and taxes. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Government procurement
151. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that government procurement in Armenia had previously been governed by Government Resolution number 67 of 8 February 1995 "On the State Procurement Order of the Republic of Armenia". Pursuant to that Resolution, when government entities wished to procure goods, they could do so either through any procurement agent or directly from the marketplace on their own behalf. No procurement entity, either State-owned or private, enjoyed special rights or privileges. All interested parties could participate in procurement activities under the common rules. These purchases, which were given effect through State Orders, were financed directly from the budget, and involved the acquisition of goods and services by government entities for their own consumption (i.e. not for resale or use as inputs into production). In the past, these arrangements had sometimes involved implicit subsidy elements for the suppliers concerned, since prices under State Orders had not necessarily corresponded to market prices.

152. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that in its efforts to bring internal legislation into full compliance with WTO regulations, the Government had initiated the adoption of the Law on Procurement, which was adopted by the Parliament on 5 June 2000, and signed by the President on 19 June 2000. As required by the Law the State Procurement Agency was established as the single agency responsible for Government Procurement (in excess of Armenian Dram 250,000) from 2001 onward. For the 2000 budget all Government procurement was made in a non-centralized manner, while all agencies made their procurements according to the regulations specified in the Law. The Law defined clear and transparent procurement rules and regulations which are in conformity with the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement, in particular the national treatment and non-discrimination principles are guaranteed in conformity with Article III of the Agreement on Government Procurement.

153. The representative of Armenia stated that the Government of Armenia had decided to commence negotiations to join the Agreement on Government Procurement from the date of accession. In this connection, Armenia would request observer status in the Committee on Government Procurement prior to accession to the WTO and would submit an entity offer within three months of accession to the WTO. He also confirmed that, if the results of the negotiations were satisfactory to the interests of Armenia and other members of the Agreement, Armenia would complete negotiations for membership in the Agreement by 31 December 2003. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- transit
154. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia permitted unimpeded and tax-free transit of goods, with the exception of those goods whose importation was prohibited, i.e. weapons, components used in the production of weapons, explosives, nuclear materials, poisons, narcotics, strong psychotropic substances, devices for use in opium smoking, and pornographic material. Thos items would only be allowed to be transit through the Republic of Armenia with the explicit consent of the Government of Armenia. transit goods remained under customs control while they were in the Republic of Armenia.

155. He further added that the Customs Code implemented on 1 January 2001 regulated transit trade. According to Article 27 of the Customs Code, within the framework of the transit shipment regime, customs charges were not levied, except for the customs fees and other fees in cases foreseen by law. Non-tariff measures were not applied, except where otherwise prescribed by the Code or other laws and international treaties to which the Republic of Armenia was a party. Armenia was a party to a plurilateral agreement on transit trade within the framework of the CIS Economic Cooperation treaty. This agreement provided that signatories should not tax or impede transit trade through their territories. Armenia had also signed a bilateral agreement on this subject with Georgia. Similar agreements with Iran and the Ukraine were under consideration.

156. The representative of Armenia confirmed that the Government would apply the laws and regulations governing transit operations and would act in full conformity with provisions of the WTO Agreement, in particular with Article V of the GATT 1994. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Agricultural policy
157. The representative of Armenia said that as in the case of the industrial sector, the Government of Armenia did not maintain State planning of any kind in the agricultural sector. The representative of Armenia added that in the past the Government of Armenia did not consider direct subsidies as a part of the development program of the agricultural sector. The Government provided some indirect subsidies, and the main types of support to the agriculture sector included the following: covering electricity charges on irrigation water supply; provision of low-interest loans to farmers and tax exemptions (particularly exemption of VAT for producers of basic agricultural products). There had been some provision of cereal seeds through "seed-loans" in the past. In addition, the Government supported a range of activities dedicated to reparation of the irrigation network, to restructuring of financial and communication infrastructures, to training farmers in improved agricultural techniques, to upgrading seed and livestock quality, to conducting pest and disease control, and to providing technical advice and extension services. In his view, those measures fit with the green box of domestic support tables as far as the provided services were available to all farmers and involved budgetary outlays. The Government intended to further increase direct support to agricultural producers. He further added that the support provided to agricultural producers was aimed to assist farmers to overcome structural and operational difficulties during the transition towards a market oriented economy.

158. He further noted that in contrast to the relatively slow pace of industrial reform, Armenia had privatized almost 70 per cent of agricultural land, and made land titles freely transferable. Information on agricultural supports was submitted to the Working Party.

159. The representative of Armenia added that as far as inputs were concerned, two large State enterprises, Hayagrospasarkum (Armagroservice) and Hayberriutyun (ArmProsperity) were dominant suppliers of agricultural services and inputs such as agricultural machines and spare parts thereof, seeds, chemicals and fertilizers. In 1996, 66 per cent of each of these enterprises had been privatized while 34 per cent had remained State owned in the form authorized by the Ministry of Agriculture (holding). Despite the fact that the competition remained somewhat constrained in the input market, there were no restrictions to stop other suppliers from entering it. More new private enterprises have been entering the market and increasing their market shares, particularly in the market of fertilizers. This tendency was expected to be continued with the development of conditions of competition in the market. He further added that those enterprises had no exclusive or special rights or privileges granted by the Government of Armenia in the field in which they operated.

160. The representative of Armenia stated that Armenia would not seek recourse to subsidies provided for under Article 6.2 of the Agreement on Agriculture.

161. Armenia's commitments concerning the elimination of the VAT exemptions for basic agricultural products and veterinary drugs are reproduced in paragraphs 64-65.

162. The representative of Armenia stated that the Government of Armenia paid no export subsidies on exports of agricultural products. Accordingly the Government of Armenia would bind its agricultural export subsidies at zero level in the relevant part of the Schedule of Concessions on Goods.

V. TRADE RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME
163. The representative of Armenia stated that the first step in the direction of intellectual property protection was the establishment of the Armenian Patent Office in 1992. Since December 1992, it has been possible to file applications for patents in respect of inventions, and as from August 1993, after adoption of the Law on Patents, to register utility models and industrial designs. An applicant not a national of Armenia and not domiciled in Armenia must conduct his affairs through a patent attorney registered with the Armenian Patent Office.

- Intellectual property policy
164. In response to requests for information concerning the intellectual property policy of the Government of Armenia, the representative of Armenia stated that the Government of Armenia was currently engaged in a substantial program of legislative reform. During 1993-1994, the Armenian Patent Office received some 3,000 applications for trade marks, service marks and appellations of origin. From January 2000 to January 2002 the Armenian Patent Office had received 296 applications for inventions – of which 273 were submitted by local Armenians and 23 by foreigners, and approximately 446 applications for trademarks according to National Procedure. However, the reception of trademark applications for registration began after the issue of Resolution No. 4 of 19 August, 1995, "On Confirmation of the Temporary Regulations for trademarks and Service Marks" and Patent Office Order of 24 October 1995, "On re-registration of former Soviet Union valid certificates for trade and service marks".

165. He further noted that in May 1997, the Armenian National Assembly had adopted the Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods, and the Law on trade Names. The provisions of the adopted statutes were fully consistent with international norms in this area. A distinctive feature of the first of these Laws was the legal equality established between trademarks and service marks. The representative of Armenia confirmed that the following legislative acts related to intellectual property protection were currently enforced in the Republic of Armenia:

Table Eleven

Legislative act	Date of enforcement
1.  Armenian Law on Patents	25. 8.93
2. Armenian Law on Copyright and Related Rights	31.5.96
3. Armenian Law on Advertising	31.5.96
4. Armenian Law on trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of the Goods	21.6.97
5. Armenian Law on trade Names	1.7.97
6. Armenian Law on Topographies of Integrated Circuits	14.3.98
7. Civil Code	1.1.99
8. Civil Procedure Code	1.1.99
9. Criminal Procedure Code	12.1.99

The representative of Armenia stated that the following legislation related to intellectual property protection, (which included either amended or original legislation) had been prepared and enacted with the aim of bringing Armenia's intellectual property protection regime into conformity with WTO requirements

Table Twelve

Legislative act	Date of Enforcement	Coverage
Law on Patents of the Republic of Armenia (new)	16.12.99	(Articles 27, 30, 31, 34 of the trIPS Agreement)
Law on Copyright and Related Rights (new)	20.01.00	(Articles 12, 14ter of the Berne Convention and Article 10 of the trIPS Agreement)
Law on trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of the Goods (new)	20.01.00	(Articles 5 ©, 6bis, 6septies, 10 of the Paris Convention and Articles 15, 16,17,19, 22, 23, 24, 46, 47 of the trIPS Agreement)
Law on trade Names	15.10.99	(Article 8 of the Paris Convention)
Amendments to Civil Code	14.3.2000	(Articles 17, 22, 30, 39 of the trIPS Agreement)
Amendments to Civil Procedure Code	24.10.00	(Articles 42, 46, 47, 50 of the trIPS Agreement)
Amendments to Criminal Procedure Code	5.4.2000	(Articles 46, 47, 50, 61 of the trIPS Agreement)
Armenian Law on Selection Achievements	27.12.2000	(related to the protection of plant varieties. Article 27 of the trIPS Agreement)
Armenian Law on Protection of Economic Competition (including the regulation of unfair competition and protection of undisclosed information)	15.12.2000	(Articles 10bis, 10ter of the Paris Convention and Article 39, 40 of the trIPS Agreement)
Customs Code	01.01.2001	("Special Requirements related to Border Measures" provided by Section 4, Part III of the trIPS Agreement)

166. The representative of Armenia stated that the Criminal Code, (implementing Articles 10bis, 10ter of the Paris Convention and Articles 46, 47, 50, 61 of the trIPS Agreement), would be implemented from the date of Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of that commitment.

- Responsible agencies for policy formulation and implementation
167. The representative of Armenia said that policy formulation and implementation in the field of industrial property (patents, utility models, industrial designs, trademarks and service marks, trade names, layout designs of integrated circuits and appellations of origin) and copyrights was the responsibility of the Armenian Intellectual Property Agency acting within the Ministry of trade and Economic Development. The Intellectual Property Agency was responsible for approving industrial property right applications, maintaining the State Register of industrial property rights, issuing an official bulletin reflecting its decisions, and cooperating with foreign institutions and international organizations. The Intellectual Property Agency was also responsible for the regime covering trademarks.

- Participation in international intellectual property agreements
168. The representative of Armenia stated that on 22 April 1993, Armenia became a Member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). On 17 May 1994, Armenia also deposited a declaration of continued application of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks and the Patent Cooperation treaty. On 27 February 1996 Armenia became a Member of the Eurasian Patent Organization. The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia ratified the Protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement concerning the International Registration of Marks on 5 April 2000 and the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works on 3 May 2000. Draft legislation concerning Armenia's accession to the Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations and the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of their Phonograms had been enacted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and Armenia had deposited its instrument of accession to the Geneva Phonograms Convention on 31 October 2002. The Convention will enter into force for Armenia on 31 January 2003.

- Application of national and MFN treatment to foreign nationals
169. Some members of the Working Party noted that although the representative of Armenia had stated that foreigners enjoyed national treatment in both civil and criminal procedures before the courts, its replies to questions concerning administrative review proceedings, dealing with the powers of judicial branches of government, suggested that the jurisdiction of economic courts was not available to foreigners from outside the CIS. In response, the representative of Armenia stated that all persons enjoyed equal rights under the law, for example, the Law on Patents provided that all foreigners enjoy the same rights as nationals of Armenia in relation to all patent matters, including protection of patents and legal remedies against infringement. The Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods, and the Law on trade Names similarly envisage full national and MFN treatment for foreigners. This was also the case with respect to the Law on Copyright, and any future laws and regulations adopted in the sphere of intellectual property protection.

- Fees and taxes
170. The representative of Armenia stated that fees were payable upon filing of an application and granting of a patent. Similar arrangements were in place for trademarks and service marks. All fees were set so as to be limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered, and the granting and protection of intellectual property rights was not subject to taxation, as any fee was collected on behalf of the budget. The fees for legal protection of Industrial property, established by the Law on State Duty of the Republic of Armenia, were identical for resident Armenians and non-residents.

- Substantive standards of protection, including procedures for the acquisition and maintenance of intellectual property rights
- Copyright protection
171. The representative of Armenia stated that the National Copyright Agency was established in 1993. More than 2,000 authors and their artworks were registered with the Agency. In the framework of its activities the Agency also registered those organizations which made use of artworks, such as theatres, concert organizations, or organizations using works of arts and crafts for industrial purposes. Copyright policy implementation was the responsibility of the National Copyright Agency, which registered copyrights, assisted individuals to secure copyrights, provided advisory services, and collected and paid royalties due to authors and their successors in title. From March of 2002 the National Copyright Agency operated within the Armenian Intellectual Property Agency.

172. The representative of Armenia added that in accordance with the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, which was adopted by the National Assembly in May 1996, the National Copyright Agency provided protection for copyrights in the Republic of Armenia. The new Law on Copyright and Related Rights had been elaborated in accordance with the provisions of the Bern Convention on the Protection of Works of Art and Literature and entered into force on 20 January 2000. It provided protection for the property rights of computer programs and compilations of data, as well as for related rights, i.e., the rights of phonogram and videogram producers and broadcasting and television stations, as protection of pre-existing copyrighted works and sound recording national treatment protection for works and sound recording.

- trademarks, including service marks
173. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that in May 1997, the Armenian National Assembly adopted the Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods and the Law on trade Names which came into force in July 1997. As mentioned earlier, a distinctive feature of the first of these Laws was the legal equality established between trademarks and service marks. The Law set out the terms and conditions of trademark protection, the kinds of trademarks that may not be registered, the procedures for registering trademarks, the rights of appeal against decisions relating to trademarks, the circumstances in which trademarks may be used, and the documentary requirements for registering a trademark. trademark protection was granted for 10 years, renewable for successive periods of 10 years. He stated that in his view, the provisions of the Law were in full conformity with Articles 15, 16.1 and 17–21 of the trIPS Agreement. In response to further questions, the representative of Armenia stated that as regards the provisions of Articles 16.2 and 16.3 of the trIPS Agreement concerning well-known trade and service marks, these were also taken into account in the Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods (unlike the former Resolution No. 4 of 19 August 1995), and they were fully reflected in the new Law on trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of the Goods which had entered into force on 15 April 2000.

- Geographical indications, including appellations of origin
174. Some members of the Working Party asked how Armenia would protect geographical indications under the Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods, and whether that legislation would be in conformity with Articles 22 to 24 of the trIPS Agreement. The representative of Armenia stated that although geographical indications had not explicitly mentioned in Resolution No 4 of 19 August 1995, nor in the former Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods of 1997, Articles 22 to 24 of the trIPS Agreement were now fully reflected in the Law on trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods of 15 April 2000. The relevant provisions in that Law had been developed in compliance with the provisions of the Paris Convention (Articles 1(2), 10, 10ter, 10bis, 6quinquies B.3), the Madrid Agreement on the Repression of False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods (Articles 1(1), 1(2)), and the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration (Articles 2(1), 2(2), 3, 6).

- Industrial designs
175. The representative of Armenia stated that industrial designs were protected by the Law on Patents of 1993. In particular, the articles of the Law which established the necessary conditions for patentability of industrial designs, were consistent with Articles 25 and 26 of the trIPS Agreement. In response to requests for information concerning the specific protection for textile designs provided for in Article 25(2) of the trIPS Agreement, the representative of Armenia stated that although textile designs were not explicitly mentioned in Article 8 of the Law on Patents of 1993 (Article 6 of the new Law on Patents of 1999), they were nevertheless covered under that provision. There was also a similar reference in Article 1.1.3 of the Rules of Drawing Up, Filing and Consideration of Applications for Industrial Design adopted on 31 August 2000.

- Patents
176. The representative of Armenia said that the owner of a title deed (title of protection patent or certificate) for invention or industrial design granted by the Patent Office of the Soviet Union, and which was still current, could file with the Armenian Patent Office for an Armenian patent at any time during the validity period of the exclusive rights (20 years after the initial filing). In the ten-year period to 1990, residents of Armenia registered 6,000 inventions with the Patent Office of the Soviet Union. The Law on Patents specified the nature of patentable subject matter, the conditions for patentability, the rights of patent holders, the conditions of compulsory licensing, the procedures for granting patents, and dispute settlement.

177. The representative of Armenia stated that the Law on Patents was adopted in August 1993. Under the law, patents were granted for inventions, utility models and industrial designs. The term of patents for inventions was 10 years for preliminary patents, which were granted on the basis of a preliminary examination of the invention, and 20 years when the patent was granted on the basis of a substantive examination (principal patent). These periods were counted from the date of filing. Patents for inventions were granted subject to requirements that the object of the patent was new, involves an inventive step and was capable of industrial application, and that no conflict arose with respect to public order and security, good morals and law.

178. He further added that the patent application was subject to formal examination which was required to be carried out within two months from the filing date. If the application satisfied the formal requirements, it was laid open to public inspection for a period of four months from a date of publication, after which a preliminary patent could be granted. A principal patent was granted depending on the results of substantive examination, which was carried out upon request of the applicant or any other interested party. The request was required to be filed within seven years of the date of filing of the patent application. The request for substantive examination could be submitted within one year after the expiration of the said seven-year period, providing the person requesting review paid an additional fee.

179. Some members of the Working Party asked whether Armenia's Law on Patents was in full conformity with Articles 27 to 34 of the trIPS Agreement, and requested further information on the conformity of Armenia's system of compulsory licensing. In response, the representative of Armenia said that in the interest of national security and in the public interests or in situations of emergency in the Republic of Armenia, as well as in instances of public non-commercial use, the Government of the Republic of Armenia was empowered to use or authorize third parties to use an invention, utility model or industrial design without the consent of the patent owner (compulsory licence), provided the patent owner was notified within 10 days and paid adequate remuneration taking into account the circumstances of each case and the economic value of such authorization.

180. The representative of Armenia stated that the new Law on Patents was in conformity with Articles 27 to 34 of the trIPS Agreement, and amendments concerning compulsory licensing were adopted on 26 November 1999.

- Plant variety protection
181. Some members of the Working Party asked Armenia would ensure protection of plant varieties. The representative of Armenia stated that the Law on Selection Achievements, ensuring the sui generis protection of plant varieties was adopted on 22 December 1999 and had entered into force on 27 December 2000.

- Layout designs of integrated circuits
182. In response to questions concerning the system for protection of layout designs of integrated circuits, the representative of Armenia stated that the Law on Protection of Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits had been adopted on 3 February 1998 and entered into force on 14 March 1998.

- Requirements on undisclosed information, including trade secrets and test data
183. In response to requests for information concerning the protection of trade secrets and undisclosed information in Armenia, notably in view of Article 39 of the trIPS Agreement, the representative of Armenia stated that Armenia had incorporated provisions for the protection of trade secrets and undisclosed information in its Civil Code (Article 141 and Chapter 68). Legislation to cover the protection of undisclosed information in the form of the Law “On Protection of Economic Competition” covering both the regulation of unfair competition and protection of undisclosed information had entered into force on 15 December 2000. By this Law the Agency of Economic Competition was established. This Agency was also responsible for unfair competition.

- Measures to control abuse of intellectual property rights
184. In response to a question, the representative of Armenia stated that appropriate measures to prevent or control abuse of intellectual property rights were contained in the Law "On Protection of Economic Competition" that had entered into force on 15 December 2000.

185. The representative of Armenia also stated that, for the purpose of combating restraints on trade and abuses of intellectual property rights, compulsory licensing was provided for under the Law on Patents. Article 16 of the Law on Patents stated that if an invention, a utility model or an industrial design were not used or were insufficiently used within four years from the date of filing an application or three years from the grant of patent, any person who, on the expiry of the mentioned term, wished to use the invention, utility model or industrial design, but had not succeeded in concluding a licence contract with the patent owner, could submit a request for a compulsory licence to the Government of the Republic of Armenia. In this event, the licence would be granted, provided that the patent owner did not furnish evidence stating valid reasons for not using or insufficiently using the invention, utility model or the industrial design. Any dispute in respect of compulsory licence granting and amounts, order and terms of payments was required to be settled in the courts.

186. He further added that under the adopted Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of the Goods, at the request of any person trademark protection could be nullified by a court decision, if a trademark has not been used within five years of the date of registration or preceding the date of request for nullification. A trademark owner has the right to defend the non-use of a trademark, and block a decision to remove the property right if the reasons for not using the trademark were beyond the control of the owner.

- Enforcement
- Civil judicial procedures and remedies
187. The representative of Armenia stated that civil court procedures were always available to deal with legal matters relating to intellectual property protection. The courts were empowered to order the payment of damages and court expenses. Other remedies envisioned in the trIPS Agreement were also within the decision-making authority of Armenian courts. In response to questions concerning foreigners' rights to enforce intellectual property rights, and whether the remedies, procedures and penalties were in conformity with Articles 42 to 49 of the trIPS Agreement, the representative of Armenia stated that the civil courts in Armenia were fully empowered to provide the remedies referred to in the above mentioned Articles of the trIPS Agreement. Civil remedies could not be ordered as a result of administrative procedures. Foreigners enjoyed the same rights as Armenian nationals in this area. Remedies against criminal behaviour were available under Armenia’s courts and penal system. Foreigners had the same access to those remedies as Armenian nationals. The Government was considering the amendment of existing legislation and introduction of additional legislation containing remedies that were framed in more specific terms for the enforcement of intellectual property rights. At a later stage, the representative of Armenia stated that the missing provisions were included in the Civil Procedure and Criminal Procedure Codes, which was adopted on 17 June 1998 and 1 July 1998 respectively and entered into force on 12 January 1999.

188. Some members of the Working Party asked whether Armenian judicial authorities had the authority to order injunctions or provisional measures against infringement of intellectual property rights, as provided for in Articles 44 and 50 of the trIPS Agreement, and whether administrative authorities enjoyed similar authority. In response the representative of Armenia stated that the judicial authorities had the power to order injunctions or provisional measures. Articles 15, 16 and 22 of the new Law on Patents indicated the areas in which remedies may be sought through the courts in the area of patent protection. Article 46 of the new Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods, as well as Articles 42 to 44 of the Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provided similar provisions in the case of trademarks, service marks, copyrights and related rights.

- Provisional measures
189. The representative of Armenia stated that the Courts of First Instance also had authority to take the provisional measures envisioned in Article 50 of the trIPS Agreement.

- Administrative procedures and remedies
190. The representative of Armenia stated that civil remedies could not be ordered as a result of administrative procedures in Armenia.

- Special border measures
191. Some members asked whether Armenia had a system of border enforcement against intellectual property rights infringements in accordance with Articles 51 to 60 of the trIPS Agreement. The representative of Armenia replied that judicial authorities were empowered to take the kinds of measures envisioned in Articles 51 to 60 of the trIPS Agreement. At a later stage, the representative of Armenia stated that full conformity with the requirements of Articles 51 to 60 of the Agreement on trIPS had been achieved with the enactment of Section 14 "Assistance of the Customs Bodies in the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights" of the Customs Code which entered into force on 1 January 2001.

- Criminal procedures
192. The representative of Armenia stated that Article 140 of the original Criminal Code provided that infringement of copyright, publication (disclosure) of an invention before the application filing, appropriation of invention’s authorship, as well as coercion or inclusion into collaboration of persons not participating in the creation of an invention, could be punished by imprisonment for a period of up to two years or by a fine in the amount of 10-20 times of the established minimal wage. Article 157 of the same Code stated that deception of purchasers and customers was punishable by imprisonment for a period of up to two years or by a fine not in the amount of 20-40 times of the established minimal wage. In addition, as mentioned above, the additional provisions included in the new Criminal Code, which entered into force on 12 January 1999. Those provisions achieved conformity with the provisions of Part III of the trIPS Agreement.

193. The representative of Armenia submitted to the Working Party draft legislation concerning the Criminal Code and the Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights aimed at implementing the trIPS Agreement. He stated that this legislation would be implemented prior to the date of adoption by the General Council of the decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of this commitment.

- Laws, decrees, regulations and other legal acts relating to the above.
194. Some members of the Working Party stated that since 1992, Armenia had bilateral commitments for the protection of intellectual property rights. Those members stated that Armenia should accelerate its legislative process to ensure the full implementation of the trIPS Agreement from the date of its accession to the WTO. In addition, some members of the Working Party requested clarification of the status of the draft Law on trade Marks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods in Parliament, and whether the legislation was in full conformity with Articles 15 to 21 of the Agreement on trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.

195. In response, the representative of Armenia replied that on May 1997, the Armenian National Assembly adopted the Law on trade and Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of Goods and the Law on trade Names and that the recently amended versions of those Laws were in full conformity with Articles 15 to 21 of the trIPS Agreement, including the rights specified in Article 16.

- Statistical data on applications for and grants of intellectual property rights, as well as any statistical data on their enforcement
196. In response to requests for information concerning the numbers of patent applications filed in Armenia, the representative of Armenia stated that during 1993-2001, 16,834 patent applications had been filed with the Patent Office. In 1,220 cases a decision for granting a patent was adopted, in 426 cases a patent was refused or the application was withdrawn, and 38 applications were under examination. During 1994-2001, 52 applications for obtaining industrial design patents were filed, 34 from foreigners, and 42 applicants were granted a patent. As regards trade and service marks and appellations of origin, after adoption of the Law on State Duty in September 1996, 7,088 applications passed the preliminary examination and 6,506 trade and service marks were registered by the Armenian Patent Office. During 1997-2001, 11 applications for appellations of origin had been filed with the Patent Office and seven appellations were registered. Under the new legislation more than 2,000 authors, theatre and concert organizations had concluded contracts with the National Copyright Agency.

197. The representative of Armenia stated that the Government of Armenia would apply the provisions of the Agreement on trIPS no later than the date of its accession to the WTO, without recourse to any transitional periods. He confirmed that on 20 November 2002 the Parliament of Armenia had adopted additional necessary amendments concerning national treatment and retroactive protection for pre-existing works which would be enacted in law prior to the adoption by the General Council of the Decision concerning Armenia's accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

VI. TRADE-RELATED SERVICES REGIME
- General
198. In response to questions, the representative of Armenia informed members of the Working Party that Armenian laws and regulations, and the policy framework did not generally distinguish between trade in goods and trade in services. The rights to trade were enshrined in the Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia, implemented on 1 January 1999. All enterprises were required to be registered and the register was open to public scrutiny. Those requirements applied to all juridical persons, whether they were self-employed persons (individual entrepreneurs) or commercial organizations.

199. Armenia's Schedule of Specific Commitments in Services is reproduced in Part II of the Annex to the Protocol of Accession.

- trade Agreements
200. Some members of the Working Party requested that Armenia provide detailed information on the range of Free and Barter trade Agreements to which Armenia was a party. Other members requested information so that the Working Party could examine whether Armenia’s plurilateral and bilateral Free trade Agreements were consistent with Article XXIV of the GATT 1994.

201. In response to these requests, the representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that Armenia had developed a network of plurilateral and bilateral trade agreements with various countries. A number of the arrangements were short-term in nature, designed to respond to particular needs, other agreements were viewed as more durable, representing the Armenian Government’s perception of the directions in which future trade relations should develop. As a member of the World trade Organization, Armenia would keep its bilateral and regional trade agreements under review, not only to ensure legal consistency, but also to ensure the coherence of Armenia’s trade relations with a broad multilateral framework.

- Plurilateral or regional agreements
202. In response to further requests for information on Armenia's trade regional trade agreements, the representative of Armenia stated that the treaty of Economic Union was a framework agreement signed by nine Heads of State of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 1993 (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan). The treaty envisaged that signatories would move towards the establishment of a customs union and common market among CIS countries, however, each signatory might exercise its own discretion on the pace and timing of integration into economic structures of the CIS. Other economic and financial components of the CIS treaty related to a payments union, cooperation on investment, industrial cooperation, and an agreement on customs procedures. The treaty set out quite specific commitments in many of these areas (as well as on cultural, scientific, and defence matters). Because the treaty was essentially an evolving framework document, it did not "operationalize" these commitments. Instead, the specifics of preferential trading relationships were defined in bilateral free trade agreements and in clearing agreements.

203. Also in response to requests for further information, the representative of Armenia explained that Armenia was also a member of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) Organization, along with ten other countries (Albania, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine). This agreement covered a number of fields, including economic cooperation and trade, investment, scientific and technical cooperation, the establishment of a BSEC Bank, and cooperation on transport and communications. The agreement did not make any provision for preferential trade, although it envisaged the possibility of free trade zones in the future. More generally, the organization seeks to cement relations among neighbouring countries through cooperation in such areas as transport, international payments and industrial development.

204. Some members asked whether Armenia had concluded an economic cooperation agreement with the European Union. The representative of Armenia confirmed that the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and Armenia had been signed on 22 April 1996, and entered into force on 1 July 1999. The Agreement did not provide for any trade preferences.

- Bilateral free trade agreements and trade and economic cooperation agreements with CIS countries
205. In response to questions of some members about Armenia's bilateral agreements with CIS countries, the representative of Armenia stated that bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) had been signed with Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine. The bilateral free trade agreements had been ratified with the Russian Federation (1993), Kyrgyz Republic (1995), Turkmenistan (1995), Georgia (1996), Ukraine (1996), Kazakhstan (1999) and Belarus (2000) and became legally binding. When the free trade agreements were established and operationalized, tariffs were set up at zero level, and non-tariff restrictions were eliminated. The representative of Armenia further responded that the FTAs had been an outgrowth of the trade and economic cooperation agreements that Armenia signed with CIS countries. Most of these early agreements were negotiated annually, they envisaged free trade and they included lists of products that the parties agreed to trade with one another. Particularly after 1992 product lists tended to become indicative with no prior agreement on prices, and the commitments were only partially fulfilled. From 1995 the practice of product commitments was eliminated. However, under the FTA with the Russia Federation, each party could exempt from duty free treatment any export items subject to quotas, licences and export taxes. Since Armenia did not maintain any export restrictions (other than those generally applicable for public security, health and safety reasons), there was nothing on Armenia’s exception list under the free trade agreement. Russia maintained certain export restrictions which could be covered by the exception provisions of the FTA, but in practice, these often did not apply because of the trade and economic cooperation agreements that Armenia also signed annually with Russia. No other exceptions to duty-free treatment for imports were contemplated in the Russian-Armenian free trade agreement. Within the period after signing of a bilateral Free trade Agreement with Armenia (1992-1997), the Russia Federation had substantially liberalized its foreign trade (removed quotas, export taxes etc.). Its legislation on tariff and non-tariff regulation of exports did not provide for a list of specific products. This ensured the conformity of the FTA between Armenia and the Russian Federation with the WTO rules on free trade. The bilateral protocol, signed on 28 August 1997, confirmed the fact that substantial deviations from the free trade regime between Armenia and Russia were eliminated. There were no exemptions from duty free treatment in the ratified bilateral agreements with Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Kyrgyz Republic and Georgia.

- Bilateral clearing arrangements
206. In response to requests for information in relation to Armenia's barter trade agreements with other countries, the representative of Armenia stated that barter was the essence of the remaining clearing arrangements maintained by Armenia. Barter arrangements had been The Government was committed to eliminating barter arrangements as soon as practicable and recognized that its role as trader or as intermediary in trade inhibited the establishment of independent networks and contacts with foreign buyers by enterprises which was an essential determinant for exporting success.
207. In response to requests for amount of trade flows arising from barter trade agreements, the representative of Armenia said that the 1993 clearing arrangements involved 74 per cent of total exports and 56 per cent of total imports. The respective figures in 1994 were 46 per cent for exports and 29 per cent for imports. As far as transport and payments problems were being settled, the importance of barter trade gradually decreased and by late 1995 deliveries under the clearing arrangements were abandoned in practice. In response to later requests for information on existing barter trade arrangements the representative of Armenia stated that in 1996 the Government announced its intention to cease barter trade, and none of the former barter arrangements was recommenced. The Government of Armenia did not envisage conducting barter or clearing settlements in the future.

- Bilateral trade and cooperation agreements
208. The representative of Armenia also stated that trade and cooperation agreements had also been signed with many non-CIS countries, including Argentina, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cyprus, European Union, Hungary, India, Iran, Lebanon, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Syria, Switzerland, Slovenia, Slovak Republic, the United States and Vietnam. The possibility of such agreements with a number of other countries was under active consideration. Those agreements sought to strengthen economic links, but did not contain any provisions for preferential trade.

- Other non-trade bilateral agreements
209. The representative of Armenia noted that Armenia had also signed a series of other agreements on investment and on customs relations. The reciprocal investment promotion and protection agreements sought to encourage investment between the parties, primarily by guaranteeing national and more favourable treatment, non-expropriation (expropriation, an extremely rare measure, could be executed only due to public needs, upon providing preliminary adequate and effective compensation for the expropriated investments), and unrestricted transfers of investment funds and returns from the investments, implementation of international arbitration practices in the case of disputes between parties, as well providing guarantees against legislative changes.

210. He further noted that investment agreements had been signed with 27 governments: Argentina, Austria, Belarus, Belgium-Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iran, Israel, Switzerland, Italy, Kyrgyz Republic, Lebanon, Romania, Russian Federation, Chinese Taipei, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vietnam. Agreements on customs relations were intended to ensure cooperation and smooth working relations between the customs services of the signatories. Such agreements had also been signed with Georgia, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine.

211. In response to further requests for clarification of the compatibility of Armenia's free trade agreements with the CIS States with Article XXIV of the GATT 1994, the representative of Armenia stated that within the framework of the 1994 Free-trade Agreement among the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Armenia’s plurilateral and bilateral free-trade agreements eliminated duties and other restrictive regulations on substantially all trade between the parties. Armenia considered that these arrangements were consistent with Article XXIV of GATT 1994. He noted that at present Armenia did not conduct trade with all CIS countries, but in respect of those countries with which Armenia did trade, Armenia imposed no taxes nor barriers on its imports and exports of goods. These agreements did not cover trade in services.

212. The representative of Armenia confirmed that Armenia would observe the provisions of the WTO Agreement including Article XXIV of the GATT 1994 and Article V of the GATS in its trade agreements, and that it would ensure that the provisions of these WTO Agreement for notification, consultation, and other requirements concerning preferential trading systems, free trade areas, and customs unions of which Armenia was a member were met from the date of accession. He confirmed that Armenia would, upon accession, submit notifications and copies of its free-trade area and customs union agreements to the Committee on Regional trade Agreements (CRTA). He further confirmed that any legislation or regulations required to be altered under its trade agreements would remain consistent with the provisions of the WTO and would, in any case, be notified to the CRTA during its examination. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- Plurilateral trade agreements
213. The representative of Armenia informed the Working Party that the Government of Armenia would join the Agreement on trade in Civil Aircraft reflecting corresponding tariff commitments in its Schedule of Concessions on trade in Goods. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

- transparency - Publication of Information
214. Some members of the Working Party requested that the Government of Armenia confirm that from the date of accession, all laws, regulations, rulings, decrees or other measures related to trade in goods or services would be published in its official publication for public review at least two weeks prior to implementation, unless a longer period was specified under the relevant WTO Agreement.

215. The representative of Armenia confirmed that, from the date of accession, all laws, regulations, rulings, decrees or other measures related to trade in goods or services would be published in its official publication for public review at least two weeks prior to implementation, unless a longer period was specified under the relevant WTO Agreement, and that no law, rule, etc., related to trade in goods and services would become effective prior to such publication. He further stated that Armenia would fully implement Article X of the GATT 1994, and Article III of the GATS and the other transparency requirements of WTO Agreements requiring notification and publication. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

Notifications
216. The representative of Armenia said that by Decree No. 321 of the Government of the Republic of Armenia of 17 June 2000 the "WTO Notification Agency in the Republic of Armenia" had been established and was now operational. The Agency operates within the structure of the Ministry of trade and Economic Development with the mandate to submit and receive notifications related to the WTO Agreements, including appropriate comments, the preparation of responses, the organisation of consultations etc.. The internet address was www.wtonc.am, and contact information for the Agency was as follows: email: wtonc@wtonc.am, fax no. (374 1) 543 983, tel. no. (374 1) 543 981 and 543 982.

217. The representative of Armenia said that at the latest upon entry into force of the Protocol of Accession, Armenia would submit all initial notifications required by an Agreement constituting part of the WTO Agreement. Any regulations subsequently enacted by Armenia which gave effect to laws enacted to implement any Agreement constituting part of the WTO Agreement would also conform to the requirements of that Agreement. The Working Party took note of these commitments.

Conclusions
218. The Working Party took note of the explanations and statements of Armenia concerning its foreign trade regime, as reflected in this report. The Working Party took note of the commitments given by Armenia in relation to certain specific matters, which are reproduced in paragraphs 23, 29, 34, 36, 37, 47, 53, 54, 60, 64, 65, 70, 72, 73, 80, 86, 87, 97, 102, 104, 106, 112, 115, 119, 135, 136, 143, 144, 148, 150, 153, 156, 166, 193, 197, 212, 213, 215 and 217 of this Report. The Working Party took note that these commitments had been incorporated in paragraph 2 of the Protocol of Accession of the Republic of Armenia to the WTO.

219. Having carried out the examination of the foreign trade regime of Armenia and in the light of the explanations, commitments and concessions made by the representatives of Armenia, the Working Party reached the conclusion that, Armenia should be invited to accede to the Agreement Establishing the WTO pursuant to the provisions of Article XII. For this purpose the Working Party has prepared the draft Decision and Protocol of Accession reproduced in the Appendix to this report, and takes note of the Republic of Armenia's Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services (document WT/ACC/ARM/23/Add.2) and its Schedules of Concessions and Commitments on Agriculture and Goods (document WT/ACC/ARM/23/Add.1) that are attached to the Protocol of Accession. It is proposed that these texts be approved by the General Council when it adopts the Report. When the Decision is adopted, the Protocol of Accession would be open for acceptance by the Republic of Armenia, which would become a Member thirty days after it accepts the said Protocol. The Working Party agreed, therefore, that it had completed its work concerning the negotiations for the accession of the Republic of Armenia to the Agreement Establishing the WTO.
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ANNEX I

(paragraph 133 refers)
The List of Products Subject to Mandatory Conformity Assessment approved by the Decree No. 239 of the Government of Armenia of 12 May, with Amendments Approved by Decree No. 110 of 17 February 2001, Decree No. 297 of 12 April 2001 and Decree No. 825 of 6 September 2001.

Description	CN code
Meat of bovine animals, frozen.	0202
Meat of swine, frozen	020321-020329
Edible offal of bovine animals and swine, frozen	020621 000, 020622, 020641
Meat and edible offal of poultry, frozen	020712, 020714, 020725, 020727, 020733, 020736
Pig fat	020900 110
Meat and edible meat offal, salted, in brine, dried or smoked	0210
Fish, fish meat, frozen, dried, salted, smoked	0303, 030420
Milk and milk products	0401, 0402, 040310, 040510, 040590, 0406
Birds' eggs	040700
Peas, chickpeas, lentils	0713-071340
Bananas, dates, pineapples, dried grapes, melons, dried fruit	080300, 080410 000, 080430 000, 0805, 080620, 0807, 0813
Coffee, tea	0901, 0902
Rice	1006
Cereal flours	110100, 1103
Soya-bean, olive, sunflower-seed, maize oil	150710 900, 150990 000, 151219 910, 151529 900
Animals and Vegetable fats and oils, margarine	1516, 1517
Preparations of meat, fish or crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates	1601-1605
Sugar, sugar confectionery	1701, 170290, 1703, 1704
Cocoa, preparations containing cocoa	180500 000, 1806
Infant food	190 110 000
Preparations of cereals, flour, starch and milk, pastry cooks' products	1902-1905 (ex. 190590 300)
Preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or other parts of plants	2001-2009
Miscellaneous edible preparations, yeast, ice-cream, cheese fondues	2101-2105, 210690 100
Beverages, spirits and vinegar	2201-2209
Tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes	2401-2403
Table salt	250 100 910
Portland cement, not coloured and pozzolanic	252321 000, 252390 300
Oil products	2707, 2710, 2711
Fertilizers	3102-3105
Paints	3208, 3209
Perfumes, beauty or make-up preparations and preparations for use on the hair, preparations for oral hygiene, shaving, deodorants and antiperspirants	3303-3306, 330710 000, 330720 000
Soap, washing and cleaning preparations	3401, 3402 20, 3402 90
Hydraulic brake, anti-freezing fluids and their components	381900 000, 382000 000
Articles of plastics for the conveyance, packing, tableware and kitchenware	392310-392330, 392410 000
Pneumatic tires of a kind used on motor cars, lorries and buses	401110 000, 401120
Retreated or used pneumatic tires	4012
Contraceptives, teats for babies	401410 000, 401490 100
Household and sanitary articles of paper, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose fibres, cotton	481810, 481820, 481840, 560110
Men's, women's and children's pyjamas, underpants, knitted or crocheted	6107-6109, 6207, 6208
Babies' garments, knitted or crocheted	6111, 6209
Electrodes and cored wire of base metal, for electric arc-welding	831110 900, 831120 000
Electro-mechanical domestic appliances	8509 ( ex. 850990)
Domestic electric heating apparatus, water heaters, immersion heaters	8516 (ex. 851680, 851690)
Electric apparatus for switching, protecting electric circuits, for making connections to or in electric circuits	853620 100, 853641, 853650, (ex. 8536 50 900) 853661, 853669, 853690
Electric lamps	853922, 853931
Electric cables and wires	8544 20 000, 8544 41 100, 8544 49 200, 854 459 800, 8544 70 000
Syringes of plastics, with or without needles	901 831 100
Revolvers and pistols, other than those of heading No. 93.03 or 93.04	9302 00
Plain-barrel single-barrelled sporting and hunting guns	From 9303 20 800
Plain-barrel double-barrelled sporting and hunting guns	From 9303 20 800
Combined guns	From 9303 20 800
Rifled sporting and hunting gun	From 93 03 30 000
Gas pistols and revolvers using cartridges charged with tear or stimulant substances	From 9303 90 000
Signal flares and other devises for  lunching of signal flares	From 9303 90 000
Aerosol devises (gas cylinders), sprayers charged with tear or stimulant substances	From 9304 00 000
Pneumatic and gas arms, as well as spring arms	From 9304 00 000
Cartridges for riveting or similar tools or for captive-bolt humane killers and parts thereof	From 9306 10 000
Cartridges	From 9306 21 000
Shot cartridge cases	From 9306 29 400
Bullets for pneumatic arms	From 9306 29 700
Wads for cartridges for hunting and sporting arms	From 9306 29 700
Little bullets, shot and grape-shot	From 9306 29 700 From 9306 30 100 From 9306 30 980
Bullets for cartridges for rifled and plain- barrel arms	From 9306 29 700 From 9306 30 100 From 9306 30 300 From 9306 30 980
Cartridges for gas pistols and revolvers	From 9306 30 910 From 9306 30 930
Cartridges and rockets for signal arms	From 9306 30 910 From 9306 30 930
Swords, cutlasses, bayonets, lances and similar arms and parts thereof and scabbards and sheaths therefore	9307 00 000
Toys	9502, 9503 (ex. 950291 000, 950299 000)

ANNEX II

(paragraph 63 refers)
The list of products (given below), imported by organizations and private entrepreneurs, that have “0” Customs Duty rate and are not subject to excise taxation and for which value added tax shall not be calculated and levied by Customs Authorities Approved by Law “On approval of list of goods, imported by organizations and private entrepreneurs, that have “0” Customs Duty rate and are not subject to excise taxation and for which value added tax shall not be calculated and levied by Customs Authorities” Adopted on 29 June 2001.

HS Code	Brief description of goods
01	Live animals
040811800	Egg powder
070110	Seed potatoes
100190100	Spelt for sawing
100300100	seeds
1005	Corn
1107	Malt
1108	Inulin
12	Oil seeds and oleaginous fruits; miscellaneous grains, seeds and fruit; industrial and medicinal plants; straw and fodder, with the exception of
120600	Sunflower seeds
1301	Gums, resins, vegetable saps and extracts, like balms
151530100	Castor oil
1703	Syrup
1801	Cocoa seeds, ground, dried or roast
2102	Yeasts (active or inactive); other single-cell microorganisms, dead (but not including vaccines of heading No. 30.02); prepared baking powders
23	Residues and waste from the food industries; prepared animal fodder, with the exception of
230910	Dog or cat food, put up for retail sail
2401	Unmanufactured tobacco, tobacco refuse
250100100	Sea water and salt in solutions
250100510	Other salt (including table salt and denatured salt) and pure sodium chloride, whether or not in aqueous solution, as well as with additions that prevent clamminess of particles and insure fluidity of liquid salts, whether denatured or for industrial purposes (incl. refinement) except for canning and human or animal food production
250300	All types of sulfur, except sublimated, residual and colloidal sulfur
250510	Silicate sand and quartz sand
250830	Fireproof clay
2512	Siliceous fossil meals (for example, kieselguhr, tripolite and diatomite) and similar siliceous earths, whether or not calcined, of an apparent specific gravity of 1 or less
251910	Natural magnesium carbonate (magnezite)
251990100	Magnesium oxides, except for calcined natural magnesium carbonate
2520	Gypsum, anhydride, plasters (consisting of calcined gypsum or calcium sulfate), whether or not colored, with or without small quantities of accelerators or retarders.
252890000	Other (not sodium) borates, natural or concentrates thereof, but not including borates separated from natural brine, natural boric acid containing more than 85% of H3BO3 , calculated on the dry weight
26	Ores, slag and ash
270720900	Toluene, others not used as fuel
271000260	Aircraft fuel
271000510	Jet aircraft fuel
271000820	Aircraft lubricants
271121	Natural gas
271220	Paraffin
271290	Cerezine
2716	Electrical energy
28	Products of chemical industry
29	Organic chemicals
3001	Glands and other organs for organo-therapeutic uses, dried, whether or not powdered; extracts of glands or other organs or of their secretions for organo-therapeutic uses; heparin and its salts; other human and animal substances prepared for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, not elsewhere specified or included
3002	Human blood, animal blood prepared for therapeutic or diagnostic uses; antisera and other blood fractions; vaccines, toxins, cultures of microorganisms (excluding yeasts) and similar products
3006	Sterile surgical substances for putting in stitches, sterile textiles for surgical covering of cuts, sterile subduing and blood stopping means used in surgery and dental treatment, opacifying preparations for X-ray examinations and diagnostic reagents designed to be administered to the patient, being unmixed products put up in measured doses or products consisting of two or more ingredients which have been mixed together for such uses, blood-grouping reagents, dental cements and other dental fillings, bone reconstruction cements, first aid boxes and kits, chemical contraceptive preparations based on hormones or spermicides
31	Fertilizers
3202	Tanning organic substances: synthetic, tanning inorganic substances: tanning preparations, containing or not containing natural tanning substances, ferment preparations for preliminary tanning
320300900	Pigments of animal origin and preparations thereof
320642	White barite and other pigments and preparations on zinc sulfate base
32065000	Luminaphores
321410100	Glazier’s putty, grafting putty, resin cements, caulking compounds and other mastics
330210	Fragrances and blends used in food and drinks industry
330290900	Other fragrances and blends not mentioned under code 3302
35	Albuminoidal substances; modified starches; glues; enzymes, with the exception of
3505	Dextrins and other modified starches (for example, pregelatinized or esterified starches), glues based on starches, or on dextrins or other modified starches
3506	Prepared glues or other prepared adhesives, not elsewhere specified or included; products suitable for use as glues or adhesives, put up for retail sale as glues or adhesives, not exceeding a net weight of 1 kg
3601100	Propellant powders
360200	Prepared explosives, other than propellant powders
360300	Safety fuses, detonating fuses, percussion or detonating caps, igniters, electric detonators
360490	Signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles
370110100	Photographic plates for X-ray used for medical, dental or veterinary uses, sensitized, unexposed, instant print film on the flat, sensitized, unexposed, whether or not in packs
370790300	Other chemical preparations for photographic uses, put up in measured portions or put up for retail sale in a form ready for sale
38	Miscellaneous chemical products, other than
3804	Residual lyes from the manufactures of wood pulp, whether or not concentrated, desugared or chemically treated, including lignin sulphonates, but excluding tall oil of heading No. 38.03
3816	Refractory cements, mortars, concretes and similar compositions, other than products of heading No. 38.01
3819	Hydraulic break fluids and other prepared liquids for hydraulic transmission, not containing or containing less than 70% by weight of petroleum oils or oils obtained from bituminous minerals
3820	Anti-freezing preparations and prepared de-icing fluids
3901	Polymers of ethylene, in primary forms
3902	Polymers of propylene or of other olefins, in primary forms
3903	Polymers of styrene, in primary forms
3904	Polymers of vinyl chloride or of other halogenated olefins, in primary forms
3905	Polymers of vinyl acetate or of other vinyl esters, in primary forms; other vinyl polymers in primary forms
3906	Acrylic polymers in primary forms
3907	Polyacetals, other polyethers and epoxide resins, in primary forms; polycarbonates, alkyd resins, polyallyl esters and other polyesters, in primary forms
3908	Polyamides in primary forms
3909	Amino-resins, phenolic resins and polyurethanes, in primary forms
3910	Silicones in primary forms
3911	Petroleum resins, coumarone-indene resins, polyterpenes, polysulphides, polysulphones and other products specified in Note 3 to this Chapter, not elsewhere specified or included, in primary forms
3912	Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere specified or included, in primary forms
3913	Natural polymers (for example, alginic acid) and modified natural polymers (for example, hardened proteins, chemical derivatives of natural rubber), not elsewhere specified or included, in primary forms
3914	Ion-exchangers based on polymers of headings Nos. 3901 to 39.13, in primary forms
3915	Waste, parings and scrap, of plastics
391710	Artificial guts (sausage casings) of hardened protein or of cellulosic materials
391910150	Self-adhesive plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip and other flat shapes, of plastics, whether or not in rolls, of polypropylene
391910900	Self-adhesive plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip and other flat shapes in rolls of a width not exceeding 20 cm, whether or not chemically modified by regrouping from products of thickening and polymerization
392020210	Plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip and other flat shapes of ethylene polymers, non-cellular and not reinforced, laminated, supported or similarly combined with other materials
392020290	Plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip and other flat shapes of propylene polymers, non-cellular and not reinforced, laminated, supported or similarly combined with other materials
392061000	Plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip and other flat shapes of polycarbonates, non-cellular and not reinforced, laminated, supported or similarly combined with other materials
392071190	Sheets, foil or tape strip of regenerated cellulose, whether compressed or not, of a width not exceeding 0.75 cm, with a printed logo
392190300	Plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip of phenolic resins
392190410	Plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip of amino-resins, laminated under high pressure, with one or both sides decorated
392190900	Other plates, sheets, film, foil, tape strip, of plastics, not specified in other subheading of heading No. 392190
4001	Natural rubber, balata, gutta-percha, guayule, chicle and similar natural gums, in primary forms or in plates, sheets or strip
4002	Synthetic rubber and factice derived from oils, in primary forms or in plates, sheets or strip; mixtures of any product of heading No. 4001 with any product of this heading, in primary forms or in plates, sheets or strip (or film)
4003	Reclaimed rubber in primary forms or in plates, sheets or strip
4005	Compounded rubber, unvulcanized, in primary forms or in plates, sheets or strip
4006	Other forms (for example, rods, tubes and profile shapes) and articles (for example, discs and rings), of unvulcanized rubber
4007	Vulcanized rubber thread and cord
4008	Plates, sheets, strip, rods and profile shapes of vulcanized rubber, other than hard rubber
4009	Tubes, pipes and hoses, of vulcanized rubber other than hard rubber, with or without their fittings (for example, joints, elbows, flanges)
4010	Conveyor or transmission belts or belting, of vulcanized rubber
401130100	Pneumatic tires of a kind used on civil aircraft
4014	Hygienic or pharmaceutical articles (including teats), of vulcanized rubber other than hard rubber, with or without fitting of hard rubber
401511	Surgical gloves of rubber
41	Raw hides and skins and leather
4301	Raw furskins (including heads, tails, paws and other pieces or cuttings suitable for furriers’ use), other than raw hides and skins of heading No. 4101, 4102 or 4103
4302	Tanned or dressed furskins (including heads, tails, paws and other pieces or cuttings), unassembled, or assembled (without the addition of other materials), other than those of heading No. 4303
4403	Wood in the rough, whether or not stripped of bark or sapwood, or roughly squared
4404	Hoopwood’ split poles; piles, pickets and stakes of wood, pointed but not sawn lengthwise; wooden sticks, roughly trimmed but not turned, bent or otherwise worked, suitable for the manufacture of walking sticks, umbrellas, tool handles or the like; chipwood and the like
4406	Railway or tramway sleepers (cross-ties) of wood
4407	Wood sawn or chipped lengthwise, sliced or peeled, whether or not planed, sanded or finger-jointed, of a thickness exceeding 6 mm
4408	Veneer sheets and sheets for plywood (whether or not spliced) and other wood sawn lengthwise, sliced or peeled, sanded or finger-jointed, of a thickness exceeding 6 mm
4409	Wood (including strips and friezes for parquet flooring, not assembled) continuously shaped (tongued, grooved, rebated, chamfered, V-jointed, beaded, moulded, rounded or the like) along any of its edges or faces, whether or not planed, sanded or finger-jointed
441019500	Board of ligneous material agglomerated with melamine resins and similar boards of ligneous materials
4801	Newsprint, in rolls or sheets
480540000	Other uncoated paper and paperboard, in rolls or sheets, whether or not processed
480570190	Other paper and paperboard, weighing more than 150 g/m2 but less than 225 g/m2 for tear
4810	Paper and paperboard, coated in one or both sides with kaolin (China clay) or other inorganic substances, with or without a binder, and with no other coating, whether or not surface-colored, surface-decorated or printed, in rolls or sheets
481190100	Printed forms of paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding and webs of cellulose fibres, not cut
481200000	Filter blocks, slabs and plates of paper pulp
4813	Cigarette paper, whether or not cut to size or in the form of booklets or tubes
482311110	Strips of width not exceeding 10 cm, coated with vulcanized rubber, whether natural or synthetic, self-adhesive on one side
482340000	Rolls, sheets and dials, printed for self-recording apparatus
482390500	Other products of paper or paperboard, sized or shaped
49	Printed books, newspapers, pictures and other products of the printing industry; manuscripts, typescripts and plans
5002	Raw silk (not thrown)
5004	Silk yarn (other than yarn spun from silk waste) not put up for retail sale
5005	Yarn spun from silk waste, not put up for retail sale
51	Wool, fine or coarse animal hair; horsehair yarn and woven fabric
52	Cotton
53	Other vegetable textile fibres; paper yarn and woven fabrics of paper yarn
54	Man-made filaments, with the exception of
5407	Woven fabrics of synthetic filament yarn
5408	Woven fabrics of artificial filament yarn
55	Man-made staple fibres
56	Wadding, felt and nonwovens, special yarns, twine, cordage and ropes
5801	Woven pile fabrics and chenille fabrics, other than fabrics of heading No. 5802 or 5806
60	Knitted or crocheted fabrics
6406	Parts of footwear
681290100	Fabricated asbestos fibres, mixtures with a basis of asbestos or with a basis of asbestos and magnesium carbonate, articles of such mixtures or of asbestos (for example, thread, woven fabric, clothing, headgear, footwear, gaskets), whether or not reinforced, other than goods of heading No. 6811 or 6813, for civil aircraft
70	Glass and glassware, with the exception of
7004	Drawn glass and blown glass, in sheets, whether or nor having an absorbent or reflecting layer, but not otherwise worked
7005	Float glass and surface ground or polished glass, in sheets, whether or not having an absorbent or reflecting layer, but not otherwise worked
7006	Glass of heading No. 7003, 7004 or 7005, bent, edge-worked, engraved, drilled, enamelled or otherwise worked, but not framed or fitted with other materials
700711100	Safety glass, consisting of toughened (tempered) or laminated glass of size and shape suitable for incorporation in vehicles
7009	Glass mirrors, whether or not framed, including rear-view mirrors
7013	Glassware of a kind used for table, kitchen, toilet, office, indoor decoration or similar purposes (other than of heading No. 7010 or 7018)
7016	Paving blocks, slabs, bricks, squares, tiles and other articles of pressed or moulded glass, whether or not wired, of a kind used for building or construction purposes; glass cubes and other glass smallwares, whether or not on a backing, for mosaics or similar decorative purposes; leaded lights and the like; multicellular or foam glass in blocks, panels, plates, shells or similar forms
7018	Glass beads, imitation pearls, imitation precious or semi-precious stones and similar glass smallwares, and articles thereof other than imitation jewelry; glass eyes other than prosthetic articles; statuettes and other ornaments of lamp-worked glass, other than imitation jewelry; glass microspheres not exceeding 1 mm in diameter
71	Pearls, precious and semi-precious stones, precious metals and articles thereof, imitation jewelry; coin, with the exception of
7101	Pearls
7113	Articles of jewelry and parts thereof, of precious metal
7114	Articles of goldsmiths’ or silversmiths’ wares and parts thereof, of precious metal
7115	Other articles of precious metal
7117	Imitation jewelry
7118	Coin
72	Base metals and articles of base metal
73	Articles of iron and steel, with the exception of
730830	Doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors
7319	Sewing needles, knitting needles, bodkins, crochet hooks, embroidery stilettos and similar articles, for use in the hand, of iron and steel; safety pins and other pins of iron and steel, not elsewhere specified or included
7321	Stoves, ranges, grates, cookers (including those with subsidiary boilers for central heating), barbecues, braziers, gas-rings, plate warmers and similar non-electric domestic appliances, and parts thereof, of iron and steel
7322	Radiators for central heating, not electrically heated, and parts thereof, of iron and steel; air heaters and hot air distributors (including distributors which can also distribute fresh or conditioned air), not electrically heated, incorporating a motor-driven fan or blower, and parts thereof, of iron and steel
7323	Table, kitchen or other household articles and parts thereof, of iron and steel; iron or steel wool; pot scourers and scouring or polishing pads, gloves and the like, of iron and steel
7324	Sanitary ware and parts thereof, of iron and steel
7325	Other cast articles of iron and steel
7326	Other articles of iron and steel
74	Copper and articles thereof
7417	Cooking or heating apparatus of a kind used for domestic purposes, non-electric, and parts thereof, of copper
7418	Table, kitchen or other household articles and parts thereof, of copper; pot scourers and scouring or polishing pads, gloves and the like, of copper; sanitary ware and parts thereof, of copper
7419	Other articles of copper
75	Nickel and articles thereof
76	Aluminium and articles thereof, with the exception of
7610	Aluminium structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading No. 9406) and parts of structures (for example, bridges and bridge sections, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their balustrades, pillars and columns); aluminium plates, rods, profiles, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures
7615	Table, kitchen or other household articles and parts thereof, of aluminium; pot scourers and scouring or polishing pads, gloves and the like, of aluminium; sanitary ware and parts thereof, of aluminium
7616	Other articles of aluminium and parts thereof
78	Lead and articles thereof
79	Zinc and articles thereof
80	Tin and articles thereof
81	Other base metals; cermets; articles thereof
830140110	Cylinder-like locks for entrance doors of buildings
830140190	Other locks for entrance doors of buildings
84	Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances; parts thereof, with the exception of
8415	Air conditioning machines, comprising a motor-driven fan and elements for changing the temperature and humidity, including those machines in which the humidity cannot be separately regulated
8418	Refrigerators, freezers and other refrigerating or freezing equipment, electric or other; heat pumps other than air conditioning machines of heading No. 8415
845011	Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, fully automatic, each of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg
845012	Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, with built-in centrifugal drier, each of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg
845019	Other household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, each of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg
8469	Typewriters and word-processing machines
8470	Calculating machines; accounting machines, cash registers, postage-franking machines, ticket-issuing machines and similar machines, incorporating a calculating device
8472	Other office machines (for example, hectograph or stencil duplicating machines, addressing machines, automatic banknote dispensers, coin sorting machines, coin-counting or wrapping machines, pencil-sharpening machines, perforating or stapling machines)
8473	Parts and accessories (other than covers, carrying cases and the like) suitable for use solely or principally with machines of headings Nos. 8469 to 8472
8476	Automatic goods-vending machines (for example, postage stamp, cigarette, food or beverage machines), including money changing machines
8481	Taps, cocks, valves and similar appliances for pipes, boiler shells, tanks, vats or the like, including pressure-reducing valves and thermostatically controlled valves
841581100 841582100 841583100 841590100	Air conditioning machines, comprising a motor-driven fan and elements for changing the temperature and humidity, including those machines in which the humidity cannot be separately regulated, for use on civil aircraft
841810100 841830100 841840100 841861100 841869100	Refrigerators, freezers and other refrigerating or freezing equipment, electric or other; heat pumps other than air conditioning machines of heading No. 8415, for use on civil aircraft
847330	Parts and accessories of the machines of heading No. 8471
8501	Electric motors and generators (excluding generating sets)
8502	Electric generating sets and rotary converters
8503	Parts suitable for use solely or principally with the machines of heading No. 8501 or 8502
8504	Electrical transformers, static converters (for example, rectifiers) and inductors
8505	Electro-magnets; permanent magnets and articles intended to become permanents magnets after magnetization; electro-magnetic or permanent magnet chucks, champs and similar holding devices; electro-magnetic couplings, clutches and brakes; electro-magnetic lifting heads
850710100 850720100 850730100 850740100 850780100 850790100	Electric accumulators and parts thereof, for use on civil aircraft
8511	Electrical ignition or starting equipment of a kind used for spark-ignition or compression-ignition internal combustion engines; generators (AC/DC) and cut-outs of a kind used in conjunction with such engines
8515	Electric (including electrically heated gas), laser or other light or photon beam, ultrasonic, electron beam, magnetic pulse or plasma arc soldering, brazing or welding machines and apparatus, whether or not capable of cutting; electric machines and apparatus for hot spraying of metals or sintered metal carbides
851621	Storage heating radiators
851629	Other electric space heating apparatus and soil heating apparatus
851680100	Electric heating resistors used on civil aircraft
851810100 851821100 851822100 851829100 851830100 851840100 851850100	Microphones and stands thereof; loudspeakers, whether or not mounted in their enclosures; headphones, earphones and combined microphone/speaker sets; audio-frequency electric amplifiers; electric sound amplifier sets, used on civil aircraft
852090100	Products of subheading No. 852090, used on civil aircraft
852110100	Magnetic tape-type video recording or reproducing apparatus, with video tuners, whether combined or not, used on civil aircraft
852290100	Blocks and joints comprised of 2 and more connected or joint parts or components, for apparatus of subheading 852090
852510	transmission apparatus
852520100	transmission apparatus for radio-telephony and radio-telegraphy, used on civil aircraft
8526	Radar apparatus, radio navigational aid apparatus and radio remote control apparatus
852790100	Reception apparatus for radio-telephony and radio-telegraphy, used on civil aircraft
852910100	Aerials and aerial reflectors of all kinds; parts suitable for use therewith, used on civil aircraft
852990100	Blocks and sub-blocks comprised of one or more parts included in sub-subheadings 85261010, 85269111, 85269119 and 85269210, used on civil aircraft
8530	Electrical signalling, safety or traffic control equipment for railways, tramways, roads, inland waterways, parking facilities, port installations or airfields (other than those of heading No. 8608)
8531	Electric sound or visual signalling apparatus (for example, bells, sirens, indicator panels, burglar or fire alarms), other than those of heading No. 8512 or 8530
8532	Electrical capacitors, fixed, variable or adjustable (pre-set)
8533	Electrical resistors (including rheostats and potentiometers), other than heating resistors
8534	Printed circuits
8535	Electrical apparatus for switching or protecting electrical circuits, or for making connections to or in electrical circuits (for example, switches, fuses, lightning arresters, voltage limiters, surge suppressors, plugs, junction boxes), for a voltage exceeding 1000 volts
8537	Boards, panels (including numerical control panels), consoles, desks, cabinets and other bases, equipped with two or more apparatus of heading No. 8535 or 8536, for electric control or the distribution of electricity, including those incorporating instruments or apparatus of Chapter 90, other than switching apparatus of heading No. 8517
8538	Parts suitable for use solely or principally with the apparatus of heading No. 8535, 8536 or 8537
853910100	Sealed beam lamps used on civil aircraft
8541	Diodes, transistors and similar semi-conductor devices; photosensitive semi-conductor devices, including photovoltaic cells whether or not assembled in modules or made up into panels; light emitting diodes; mounted piezo-electric crystals
8542	Electronic integrated circuits and micro assemblies
854389100	Flight variables recorders used on civil aircraft
8545	Carbon electrodes, carbon brushes, lamp carbons and other articles of graphite or other carbon, with or without metal, of a kind used for electrical purposes
8546	Electrical insulators of any materials
8547	Insulating fittings for electrical machines, appliances or equipment, being fittings wholly of insulating material apart from any minor components of metal (for example, threaded sockets), incorporated during moulding solely for purposes of assembly, other than insulators of heading No. 8546; electrical conduit tubing and joints thereof, of base metal lined with insulating material
8548	Electrical parts of machinery or apparatus, not specified or included elsewhere in this Chapter
86	Railway or tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof
8701	tractors
870390100	Vehicles with electric engine (trolleys)
8704	Motor vehicles for the transport of goods
8705	Special purpose motor vehicles, other than those principally designed for the transport of persons or goods (for example, breakdown lorries, crane lorries, fire fighting vehicles, concrete-mixer lorries, road sweeper lorries, spraying lorries, mobile work-shops, mobile radiological units)
8709	Works trucks, self-propelled, not fitted with lifting or handling equipment, of the type used in factories, warehouses, dock areas or airports for short distance transport of goods; tractors of the type used on railway station platforms; parts of the foregoing vehicles
8710	Tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, motorized, whether or not fitted with weapons, and parts of such vehicles
8713	Invalid carriages
8714	Parts and accessories of invalid carriages
88	Aircraft, spacecraft and parts thereof
89	Ships, boats and floating structures
9001	Optical fibres and optical fibre bundles; optical fibre cables other than those of heading No. 8544; sheets and plates of polarizing material; lenses (including contact lenses), prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, unmounted, other than such elements of glass not optically worked
9002	Lenses, prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, mounted, being parts of or fittings for instruments or apparatus, other than such elements of glass not optically worked
9006	Photographic (other than cinematographic) cameras; photographic flashlight apparatus and flashbulbs other than discharge lamps of heading No. 8539
9007	Cinematographic cameras and projectors, whether or not incorporating sound recording or reproducing apparatus
9011	Compound optical microscopes, including those for microphotography, microcinematography or microprojection
9012	Microscopes other than optical microscopes; diffraction apparatus
9013	Liquid crystal devices not constituting articles provided for more specifically in other headings; lasers, other than laser diodes; other optical appliances and instruments, not specified elsewhere in this Chapter
9014	Direction finding compasses; other navigational instruments and appliances
9015	Surveying (including photogrammetrical surveying), hydrographic, oceanographic, hydrological, meteorological or geophysical instruments and appliances, excluding compasses; rangefinders
9016	Balances of a sensitivity of 5 cg or better, with or without weights
9017	Mechanical calculating apparatus
9018	Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro-medical apparatus and sight-testing equipment
9019	Mechano-therapy appliances’ massage apparatus; psychological aptitude-testing apparatus; ozone therapy, oxygen therapy, aerosol therapy, artificial respiration or other therapeutic respiration apparatus
9020	Other breathing appliances and gas masks, excluding protective masks having neither mechanical parts nor replaceable filters
9021	Orthopaedic appliances, including crutches, surgical belts and trusses; splints and other fracture appliances; artificial parts of the body; hearing aids and other appliances which are worn or carried, or implanted in the body, to compensate for a defect or disability
9022	Apparatus based on the use of X-rays or alpha, beta or gamma radiations, whether or not for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary uses, including radiography or radiotherapy apparatus, X-ray tubes and other X-ray generators, high tension generators, control panels and desks, screens, examination or treatment tables, chairs and the like
9023	Instruments, apparatus and models, designed for demonstrational purposes (for example, in education or exhibitions), unsuitable for other use
9024	Machines and appliances for testing the hardness, strength, compressibility, elasticity or other mechanical properties of materials (for example, metals, wood, textiles, paper, plastics)
9025	Hydrometers and similar floating instruments, thermometers, pyrometers, barometers, hygrometers and psychrometers, recording or not, and any combination of these instruments
9026	Instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking the flow, level, pressure or other variables of liquids or gases (for example, flow meters, level gauges, manometers, heat meters), excluding instruments and apparatus of heading No. 9014, 9015, 9028 or 9032
9027	Instruments and apparatus for physical or chemical analysis (for example, polarimeters, refractometers, spectrometers, gas or smoke analysis apparatus); instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking viscosity, porosity, expansion, surface tension or the like; instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking quantities of heat, sound or light (including exposure meters); microtomes
9028	Gas, liquid or electricity supply or production meters, including calibrating meters therefore
9029	Revolution counters, production counters, taximeters, mileometers, pedometers and the like; speed indicators and tachometers, other than those of heading No. 9015; stroboscopes
9030	Oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers and instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking electrical quantities, excluding meters of heading No. 9028; instruments and apparatus for measuring or detecting alpha, beta, gamma, X-ray, cosmic or other ionizing radiations
9031	Measuring or checking instruments, appliances and machines, not specified or included elsewhere in this Chapter; profile projectors
9032	Automatic regulating or controlling instruments and apparatus
9033	Parts and accessories (not specified or included elsewhere in this Chapter) for machines, appliances, instruments or apparatus of Chapter 90
910400100	Instrument panel clocks and clocks of a similar type used on civil aircraft
9108-9112, 9114	Watch parts
92	Musical instruments
93	Arms and ammunition
940110100	Seats of a kind used for aircraft, without leather upholstery, for civil aircraft
9402	Medical, surgical, dental or veterinary furniture
940320100	Other metal furniture for civil aircraft
940510100	Chandeliers and other electric lighting fittings of base metal or plastic, for civil aircraft
940560100	Illuminated signs, illuminated nameplates and the like of base metal or plastic, for civil aircraft
940592100	Parts of goods specified in heading No. 940510 or No. 940560, for civil aircraft
950599100	Parts of goods specified in heading No. 940510 or No. 940560, of base metal, for civil aircraft

ANNEX III

(paragraph 75 refers)
- Security Sector (production of explosive materials, production of weapons, trade in weapons, collection and exhibition of weapons, acquisition of weapons, production of or trade in narcotic drugs, anaesthetic and radioactive materials, money printing or coining, preparation or production of state medals, stamps and seals, import or export of narcotic drugs, production of explosives or equipment for explosions, trade in explosive materials or equipment for explosion, explosive works, production of import of or trade in fireworks materials);

- trade Sector (organization of trading in the exchanges (non-stock)); Health Sector (production of medicines, trade in medicines, trade in herbs, medical aid and services by organizations or individual entrepreneurs, genetic engineering, implementation of medium professional and high medical educational programs);

- Currency Regulation Sector (foreign currency trading, organization of foreign currency auctions); Securities Turnover Sector (printing of securities forms, professional activities in the securities market);

- Banking and Financial Organizations Sector (banking activities, organization of pawnshops, activities of investment companies, investment funds, insurance activity, rendering of collection services, insurance brokerage and mediation, rendering of audit services); Agricultural Sector (veterinary, bloodstock breeding);

- Power Engineering Sector (production, import and export, transport, distribution of and trade in natural gas; production, import, transmission, export, distribution of and trade in electrical energy; production, import and export, transport, distribution of and trade in of thermal energy; rendering services on transmission and centralized regulation of electrical energy; construction of new capacities in the fields of electrical and thermal powers);

- Education Sector (implementation of basic general educational programs, implementation of secondary (full) general educational programs, implementation of special general educational programs, implementation of higher professional educational programs, excluding medical programs);

- Telecommunications Sector (rendering of telephone services, rendering of telegraphic communication services, rendering of data transmission services, rendering services on broadcasting of radio-television programs, production of trade in or import of radio-electronic devices within the frequency range above 9KHz and 400, production of radio-television programs, broadcasting of radio-television programs, production and broadcasting of radio-television programs);

- Customs Sector (maintenance of goods under customs control in the customs warehouse, trade in goods under customs control in duty-free shops, maintenance of goods in free customs warehouse, customs mediation, activities of a customs carrier);

- Nuclear Power Sector (works on selection, construction, putting into operation, operation, usage, maintenance and removing away from operation of nuclear and radioactive waste stations, sources and storage of ionizing radiation; works with radioactive wastes of nuclear and radioactive materials, including transportation, usage, storage, reprocessing and burial of such materials; import and export of nuclear, radioactive and special materials, radioactive wastes, special equipment, technologies; design and preparation of materials, equipment and systems for projects using atomic energy; expertise of projects using atomic energy, their designs and other documents);

- Environment Protection Sector (reprocessing, neutralization, storage, transport and placement of dangerous wastes);
- Quality, Standardization, Certification, Measurement Sector (production and repair of measurement means);
- Lotteries and Price Games Sector (organization of lotteries, organization of games of chance, organization of gambling halls);
- transport Sector (activities of scheduled air transport, activities of not-scheduled air transport, organization of railroad transport);
- Urban Construction Sector (elaboration of urban construction documents in the area of capital construction in the following fields of urban construction, civic, industrial, transport, hydro technical, power engineering, communication, special; capital construction in the following fields of urban construction, civic, industrial, transport, hydro technical, power engineering, communication, special);

- Activities in other fields (statutory expertise examinations of types of activities subject to licensing, non-official publication, duplication or official re-publication of laws and legal-normative acts, implementation of activities of an administrator on insolvency issues of insolvent enterprises, site and cadastre mapping, evaluation of real estate, realtor activity, foodstuff production).

APPENDIX

DRAFT DECISION
ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
Decision of […]

The General Council
Having regard to paragraph 2 of Article XII and paragraph 1 of Article IX of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World trade Organization (the "WTO Agreement"), and the Decision-Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the WTO Agreement agreed by the General Council (WT/L/93);
Conducting the functions of the Ministerial Conference in the interval between meetings pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article IV of the WTO Agreement;
Noting the results of the negotiations directed toward the establishment of the terms of accession of the Republic of Armenia to the WTO Agreement and having prepared a Protocol on the Accession of the Republic of Armenia;
Decides as follows:
1. The Republic of Armenia may accede to the WTO Agreement on the terms and conditions set out in the Protocol annexed to this Decision.

RAFT PROTOCOL
ON THE ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA

Preamble
The World trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO"), pursuant to the approval of the General Council of the WTO accorded under Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO Agreement"), and Armenia,
Taking note of the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of the Republic of Armenia to the WTO Agreement reproduced in document WT/ACC/ARM/23, dated 22 November 2002 (hereinafter referred to as the "Working Party Report"),
Having regard to the results of the negotiations on the accession of the Republic of Armenia to the WTO Agreement,
Agree as follows:

PART I GENERAL
1. Upon entry into force of this Protocol pursuant to paragraph 8, the Republic of Armenia accedes to the WTO Agreement pursuant to Article XII of that Agreement and thereby becomes a Member of the WTO.

2. The WTO Agreement to which the Republic of Armenia accedes shall be the WTO Agreement, including the Explanatory Notes to that Agreement, as rectified, amended or otherwise modified by such legal instruments as may have entered into force before the date of entry into force of this Protocol. This Protocol, which shall include the commitments referred to in paragraph 218 of the Working Party Report, shall be an integral part of the WTO Agreement.

3. Except as otherwise provided for in paragraph 218 of the Working Party Report, those obligations in the Multilateral trade Agreements annexed to the WTO Agreement that are to be implemented over a period of time starting with the entry into force of that Agreement shall be implemented by the Republic of Armenia as if it had accepted that Agreement on the date of its entry into force.

4. The Republic of Armenia may maintain a measure inconsistent with paragraph 1 of Article II of the GATS provided that such a measure was recorded in the list of Article II Exemptions annexed to this Protocol and meets the conditions of the Annex to the GATS on Article II Exemptions.

PART II SCHEDULES
5. The Schedules reproduced in Annex I to this Protocol shall become the Schedule of Concessions and Commitments annexed to the General Agreement on Tariffs and trade 1994 (hereinafter referred to as the "GATT 1994") and the Schedule of Specific Commitments annexed to the General Agreement on trade in Services (hereinafter referred to as "GATS") relating to the Republic of Armenia. The staging of the concessions and commitments listed in the Schedules shall be implemented as specified in the relevant parts of the respective Schedules.

6. For the purpose of the reference in paragraph 6(a) of Article II of the GATT 1994 to the date of that Agreement, the applicable date in respect of the Schedules of Concessions and Commitments annexed to this Protocol shall be the date of entry into force of this Protocol.

PART III FINAL PROVISIONS
7. This Protocol shall be open for acceptance, by signature or otherwise, by the Republic of Armenia until 10 May 2003.

8. This Protocol shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the day upon which it shall have been accepted by the Republic of Armenia.

9. This Protocol shall be deposited with the Director General of the WTO. The Director General of the WTO shall promptly furnish a certified copy of this Protocol and a notification of acceptance by the Republic of Armenia thereto pursuant to paragraph 7 to each Member of the WTO and to the Republic of Armenia.
This Protocol shall be registered in accordance with the provisions of Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.
Done at […] this […] day of […] in a single copy in the English, French and Spanish languages, each text being authentic, except that a Schedule annexed hereto may specify that it is authentic in only one of these languages.

ANNEX

SCHEDULE CLV – REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA

Authentic only in the English language.
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/ARM/23/Add.1)

SCHEDULE OF SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS ON SERVICES
LIST OF ARTICLE II EXEMPTIONS

Authentic only in the English language.
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/ARM/23/Add.2)

Civil Society Partnership Network

The informal coalition of 22 well-known NGOs, called Civil Society Partnership Network has evolved into a real functioning body that already has a recognition among national policy makers and other NGOs as a united force dedicated to the effective implementation of PRSP in Armenia. CSPN activities have shake the attitude of neglect by the decision makers to the people and the civil society as the latter are emerging as a more capable and informed about their rights. There is evidence of expressed desire of cooperation by the decision makers in the communities as well as at the national policy level.

Since October 2002 numerous meetings/round table discussions and debates have been held with the partners who have signed an agreement of a coalition to fight with the joint efforts for the effective implementation of PRSP. The meetings were devoted to coming up with shared understanding over the key national processes affecting poverty, forming recommendations and coming up with strategies to influence the PRSP, as well as for sharing with the programmatic experience coming from their grassroots work and developing a strategy for future cooperation and programmatic developments.

There has been an alert overview of the PRSP process and numerous attempts to affect the final PRSP by the Civil Society Partnership Network. As a result many of the recommendations suggested by partners had been included in the first version of final draft of PRSP. Unfortunately, there had been several major changes made in a close and non-participatory manner by the decision of the PRSP Working Group and probably under the pressure of major IFIs acting in the country in the final version of PRSP to be submitted for approval by the government. As a result a big part of the solid contribution OGB Armenia and partners had made was ignored.

In mid-June WB w/support of GTZ organized " Social Accountability and Participation” Workshop. Among the engaged there were also representatives of local NGOs. On the workshop Oxfam has made the presentation on behalf of CSPN, where various arguments and the principles underlining the difference in PRSP approaches were indicated. After the seminar the protocol on joint development of monitoring indicators was performed under the pressure of WB - the decision on preservation of WG status in accomplishment of PRSP monitoring and evaluation is made, while the principle of involvement and participation of public organizations is not clear yet.

It is decided that sectional departments will be involved in process of development of sectional basis activities' plan, and table of monitoring indicators. Action plan and timetable development, as well as indicators' system, from the ministries’ party, will be completed within 2 months. The sectional ministries will elaborate particular intermediate indicators as well, to be measured according to milestones of PRSP implementation.

There should be an institutionalized monitoring, with support of line ministries to develop strategies and indicators: input, intermediate, outcome, impact. All the supportive information is expected to be ready by Dec 2003.

The idea is of independent monitoring, however the conceptual frame of it is nod exactly imagined. Legal and social strategies in the document are presented separately. Some differentiation of coordination, roles, responsibilities, and resources, is to be done.

WG remains the coordinating link on a transition period for a while, and hereinafter its functions will be reconsidered. And some TOR of strategy development will be elaborated.

As the previous document contained action plan of the ministries, currently it will be compared to changes in the last version of the document, and so new plan will be elaborated. In a plan of action Government, Steering Committee, Working Group will be included.

The May-2003-version of PRSP was subjected to sharp criticism. It is discussed that the previous version of the document in due course has undergone significant changes thanks to vigorous activity of Civil Society. Mutual agreement about the submission of opinions is achieved around the document.

Now we possess a plenty of the reasonable opinions elaborated by CSPN, which we presented PRSP WG. The basic purpose of our interference is to achieve probably not conceptual changes, but then changes in sense of recognition of participatory factor, especially in exclusion of economic growth as basic priority from the document.

The following step on behalf of authorities will be the ratification of the document with its submission to consideration in new National Assembly. The discussion will be conducted by coalition of 3 political parties. Currently there is some big pressure by public organizations, the donor organizations, separate linear divisions of the various ministries, and also separate persons and the experts involved in process of the document elaboration, that already have made the commentaries on the document.

However, there has been an organized pressure through open letters and speeches in the PRSP working meetings criticizing the further process and content of the PRSP on behalf of the whole Network, as a result of which although the Network did not fully succeed in recovering the primary version of PRSP created in a more participatory process but has become a vivid and recognized actor in the PRSP process. The process of influencing the final PRSP is still continued.

Currently a project namely “Monitoring and Evaluation of Local Self-Governance and Health Care in frames of PRSP” is initiated by CSPN, with duration of 1 year, the news and detailed information/database about which will be available soon on this web page.

PRSP Update, September 2003

PRSP Status
Government of Armenia adopted Paper on August 8. However, President did not sign the document as of September 10. Whether the Parliament will consider the document – no idea, but the majority of opinions are declined to no special changes the program will undergo. It is to note that the document is accepted with condition of freedom in the further actions on its perfection and addition, that in quality revision once a year or time in two years will be carried out.
Now there is no group would seriously be engaged in the document activities (Steering committee and Working group consider they have performed work completely, except for the persons representing Civil Society), and this work actually is on Tigran Khachatryan, MoFE, only.

Contributions of Oxfam GB
Last version of Paper, which has underlain accepted, became so-called August version, however with some changes. August differed from the July version by quantity of approximately 30-35 pages where our basic offers on policies and priorities have found place, made in common on behalf of CSP Network. Some positions and tables are born in attachments. It is to emphasize that the majority of comments and offers from party of Oxfam and Civil Society have found the place in the document, in particular, offers in sphere of public health services, the micro finance, and equal distribution. So here’s the sort of short list of distinctions between last version and the accepted document:
1. In policies on economic growth - marked that they should have pro-poor orientation.
2. In the list of priorities paths of sustainable economic growth should not be marked as an absolute priority, and it is necessary to ascertain revision of “technologies of redistribution”, including ones for political, economic, and social spheres (for example, as revision of budgetary processes it is possible to carry out increment in degrees of participation). In this direction, an increase in degree of public participation in decision-making processes considered the most important, as well as – by this purpose - the “attention on knowledge” (read “information affordability”) of the population is rendered.

About the list of attachments – the system of criteria of an estimation of economy is to be developed, as well as description of system of social protection and the basic directions of a policy in this sphere; social assistance to elderly and disabled; the State expenditure in public health services and growth of affordability of services; and monitoring.
In mid-August, right after adoption of document, the meeting of CSPN representatives and IMF Mission has taken place, during which our arguments and concerns about imperfection of the program have been raised again.

Amendments out of Oxfam GB
August differed from the July version by the offers on priorities made on behalf of some other organizations (Hazarashen, Unison, etc.). In the August version also there are some minor alterations, which concern basically structure of the document.
1. As a priority the anticorruption policies are marked.
2. Necessity of development of “democratic technologies”, especially Social Partnership, social integrity, and participation, are emphasized.

What is left out?
The macro model performed by EDRC didn’t find its reflection as a full incorporation of policy - again because of WB/IMF pressure. Currently EDRC updates its policy paper on macro modeling, which will be finalized soon, and there is likelihood to submit it to an international expertise (Max Lawson & Washington WB/IMF expertise). This will allow us to have opinions for strong lobbying.

Monitoring
About monitoring - own state monitoring mechanism over PRSP is absent for the moment, and there is only an estimation to measure levels of being informed on the program. In this context the role of alternative actions, as the pilot project of CSPN on Monitoring of LSG and HealthCare in frames of PRSP is especially crucial, and in this sense our role is important: we mean lobbying as application of results of the project as the successful models promoting reception, in particular, the interim indicators.
Currently the Network’s Monitoring started, the initial information gathering from focus groups and systematization/analysis is on progress (Syunik mostly). After editing the information will be posted in Website, with simultaneous translation into English, as a start of our Database.

Government undertakings
The division into functional segments is clear more or less, which ministry should do what in PRSP, but still no certainty particularly in dealing with non-governmental implementers?
Indicators of monitoring should be produced by the state: “System of monitoring indicators most correlated with poverty (social and poverty monitoring indicators) and Methodology for their measurement/collection”.
As it is stated in WG last documents, in 2 months after the adoption of document (i.e. mid-October) the Government should elaborate “The working plan of actions’ implementation”, and hopefully our suggestions will be included in it (with execution of policies in public health services (revolving drug fund), the micro finance, and disability).

Now at our disposal there is quotation from the Policies appendix of PRSP adopted, which represents the short list designed for 2003-2006 years. Among policies - development of mechanisms of social partnership - 2003, development complex programme on monitoring, analysis and impact of PRSP - 2003, creation of conditions of communications development between farms and credit organizations - 2004, increase of transparency of all budget process - 2004, simplification of the budget - 2004-2005, improvement of a legal field of LSG activities - 2004, gradual transfer of functions of management by systems of secondary education, primary public health services, social services etc. - 2004-2006, active cooperation with civil society in prevention of corruption - 2003-continuous, establishment of sustainable economical growth strategy - 2003, increase of availability and affordability of services to disabled, orphans, refugees, and IDP - 2004-continuous, legislative regulation of social security for disabled - 2004, increase of a share of salaries in the budget for primary health care - 2004-continuous, accessible/affordable Health Care, introduction of criteria of medical services quality control - 2004. As responsible structures for fulfillment of this or that item the state ministries and other structures are noted, which will make the decisions over this or that policy line.
For clarity what specific projects /programmes exist under each sectoral policy, additional information is needed from them.
Oxfam plans to use meetings planned under the Health campaign with key policy and state people to know what program is anticipated under accessible and affordable PHC and push forward our community based health program.

Hanging questions

When development of monitoring indicators starts?
Who is involved in the indicators’ development process? What’s the role of civil
society in it?