ARMENIA
BASIC INFO:
Population 2017 3,045,191
GDP per capita 2017 (PPI, US$)... 9,500
GDP 2017 (PPI, US$ billions) 28.28
Unemployment 2017 18.9%
Total Area 29,743 sq km
Urban Population 63.1%
Life expectancy at birth (years) 74.9
Mortality rate, (per 1,000 live births) 12.7
Illiteracy (% of population age 15+) . 3%
History
After the destruction of the Seleucid Empire, the first Armenian state was founded in 190 BC. At its zenith, from 95 to 55 BC, Armenia extended its rule over the area of what is now eastern Turkey. For a time, Armenia was the strongest state in the Roman East. It became part of the Roman Empire and adopted a Western political, philosophical, and religious orientation.
In 301 AD, Armenia became the first nation to adopt Christianity as a state religion, establishing in the 6th century a church that still exists independently of both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox churches. During its later political eclipses, Armenia depended on the church to preserve and protect its unique identity.
Between the 4th and 19th centuries, Armenia was conquered and ruled by, among others, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs, Mongols, and Turks. For a brief period from 1918 to 1920, it was an independent republic. In late 1920, the communists came to power, and in 1922, Armenia became part of the Trans-Caucasian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1936, it became the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. Armenia declared its independence from the Soviet Union on September 23, 1991.
Government type:
parliamentary democracy; note - constitutional changes adopted in December 2015 transformed the government to a parliamentary system
Capital:
name: Yerevan
Administrative divisions:
11 provinces (marzer, singular - marz); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir, Geghark'unik', Kotayk', Lorri, Shirak, Syunik', Tavush, Vayots' Dzor, Yerevan
Independence:
21 September 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 21 September (1991)
Constitution:
history: previous 1915, 1978; latest adopted 5 July 1995
amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; passage requires approval by the president, by the National Assembly, and by a referendum with at least 25% registered voter participation and more than 50% of votes; constitutional articles on the form of government and democratic procedures are not amendable; amended 2005, 2007, 2008, last in 2015
note: a 2015 amendment, approved in December 2015 by a public referendum and effective for the 2017-18 electoral cycle, changes the government type from the current semi-presidential system to a parliamentary system (2017)
Legal system:
civil law system
International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Armenia
dual citizenship recognized: yes
residency requirement for naturalization: 3 years
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Armen SARKISSIAN (since 9 April 2018)
head of government: Prime Minister Nikol PASHINYAN (since 8 May 2018); First Deputy Prime Minister Ararat MIRZOYAN (since 11 May 2018)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by the National Assembly in 3 rounds if needed for a single 7-year term; election last held on 2 March 2018; prime minister elected by majority vote in 2 rounds if needed by the National Assembly; election last held on 8 May 2018
election results: Armen SARKISSIAN elected president in first round; note - Armen SARKISSIAN ran unopposed and won the Assembly vote 90-10; Nikol PASHINYAN elected prime minister in second round; note - Nikol PASHINYAN ran unopposed and won the Assembly vote 59-42
Legislative branch:
description: unicameral National Assembly (Parliament) or Azgayin Zhoghov (minimum 101 seats, currently 105; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
elections: last held on 2 April 2017 (next to be held in spring of 2022, unless election called earlier)
election results: percent of vote by party - RPA 49.2%, Tsarukyan Alliance 27.4%, Yelk (Way Out) 7.8%, ARF (Dashnak) 6.6%, other 9%; seats by party - RPA 58, Tsarukyan Alliance 31, Yelk (Way Out) 9, ARF (Dashnak) 7
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Court of Cassation (consists of the Criminal Chamber with a chairman and 5 judges and the Civil and Administrative Chamber with a chairman and 10 judges – with both civil and administrative specializations); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges)
judge selection and term of office: Court of Cassation judges nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council, a 10-member body of selected judges and legal scholars; judges appointed by the president; judges can serve until age 65; Constitutional Court judges - 4 appointed by the president, and 5 elected by the National Assembly; judges can serve until age 70
subordinate courts: criminal and civil appellate courts; administrative appellate court; first instance courts; specialized administrative and bankruptcy courts
Political parties and leaders:
Armenian National Congress or ANC (bloc of independent and opposition parties) [Levon TER-PETROSSIAN]
Armenian National Movement or ANM [Ararat ZURABIAN]
Armenian Revolutionary Federation or ARF ("Dashnak" Party) [Hrant MARKARIAN]
Bright Armenia [Edmon MARUKYAN]
Civil Contract [Nikol PASHINYAN]
Heritage Party [Raffi HOVHANNISIAN]
People's Party of Armenia [Stepan DEMIRCHIAN]
Prosperous Armenia [Gagik TSARUKYAN]
Republic [Aram SARGSYAN]
Republican Party of Armenia or RPA [Serzh SARGSIAN]
Rule of Law Party (Orinats Yerkir) [Artur BAGHDASARIAN]
Tsarukyan Alliance [Gagik TSARUKYAN]
Yelk (Way Out) [Edmon MARUKYAN, Nikol PASHINYAN, Aram SARGSIAN] (alliance includes Bright Armenia, Civil Contract, Republic)
ECONOMICS:
Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics, in exchange for raw materials and energy. Armenia has since switched to small-scale agriculture and away from the large agro industrial complexes of the Soviet era. Armenia has only two open trade borders - Iran and Georgia - because its borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey have been closed since 1991 and 1993, respectively, as a result of Armenia's ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan over the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Armenia joined the World Trade Organization in January 2003. The government has made some improvements in tax and customs administration in recent years, but anti-corruption measures have been largely ineffective. Armenia will need to pursue additional economic reforms and strengthen the rule of law in order to raise its economic growth and improve economic competitiveness and employment opportunities, especially given its economic isolation from Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Armenia's geographic isolation, a narrow export base, and pervasive monopolies in important business sectors have made it particularly vulnerable to volatility in the global commodity markets and the economic challenges in Russia. Armenia is particularly dependent on Russian commercial and governmental support, as most key Armenian infrastructure is Russian-owned and/or managed, especially in the energy sector. Remittances from expatriates working in Russia are equivalent to about 12-14% of GDP. Armenia joined the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union in January 2015, but has remained interested in pursuing closer ties with the EU as well, signing Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement with the EU in November 2017. Armenia’s rising government debt is leading Yerevan to tighten its fiscal policies – the amount is approaching the debt to GDP ratio threshold set by national legislation.
People
The people of Armenia are almost all ethnic Armenians, 93%, with small numbers of Russians and other nationalities. Armenia has a literacy rate of 99%
ARMENIA National Air Transport System
number of registered air carriers: 3
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 5 (2015)
Civil aircraft registration country code prefix:
EK (2016)
Airports:
11 (2013)
country comparison to the world: 154
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 10
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2017)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2013)
Pipelines:
gas (high and medium pressure) 3,838 km (2017)
Railways:
total: 780 km
broad gauge: 780 km 1.520-m gauge (780 km electrified)
note: 726 km operational (2014)
country comparison to the world: 99
Roadways:
total: 7,792 km (2013)
Tourism
Tourism is a a small but growing industry in Armenia. Many of the tourist are ethinic Armenian coming to visit. In 2016 1,259,657 tourist visited Armenia. That number increased by approximately 18% in 2017. The country has 200 sites that would be of interest to tourist, but the tourist infastructure is poorly developed.
HISTORY WAVE
Post a Comment