Overview of the Anti-Corruption Fight in Armenia

Abstract

According to the NGO Policy Forum Armenia's estimation, Armenia lost $5.9 billion in 2013 because of corruption, and instead of a GDP of $10.5 billion in 2013, it would have had $16.4 billion, if only it had had a level of governance comparable to Botswana and Namibia. On February 19, 2015 Armenia established a new institutional structure to fight corruption led by the Prime Minister. This new setup requires the adoption of a new, third anti-corruption strategy for Armenia. The implementation of the previous two strategies and their action plans (2003-2006 and 2009-2012) have not brought substantial changes in the fight against corruption and most importantly have not increased popular trust in the effectiveness of fighting corruption. This article will examine Armenia's experience in fighting corruption, and then discuss current obstacles to success in the context of the new institutional setup.