H. Abrahamyan: Armenian government makes consistent efforts to increase affordability of air services
The Armenian government makes consistent efforts to increase the affordability of air services, Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan said in his speech at the event marking the launch of ‘My Armenia’ project.
The purpose of ‘My Armenia’ project carried out by USIAD in cooperation with the Smithsonian is to promote the preservation of the national culture through the development of cultural tourism in Armenia. ‘My Armenia’s is a $5 million project for a 4-year period.
Hovik Abrahamyan reminded those present that on October 23, 2013 the government of Armenia announced an open sky policy.
“During that period negotiations have been conducted with over 30 foreign airlines in order to attract them to the Armenian market,” the premier said stressing the need to make every effort so as to increase the contribution of the tourism sector to a proportionate economic development and the process of raising the population’s standard of living.
Tourism is one of the most dynamically developing sectors of the Armenian economy, H. Abrahamyan said. In 2014 about 1 million 204 thousand tourists visited Armenia, which was an 11.3% increase compared with 2013, he said.
The number of international tourists amounted to about 860,000, also exceeding the 2013 index. Hotel construction is on the rise in Armenia: there are about 340 hotels in the country, 20 of which were built in the last three years, the PM said.