UN General Assembly
1995

a month last year to 1 per cent in August. The currency, the Dram, is now one of the strongest in the region. Since mid-1994 a macroeconomic stabilization programme has been under way. We have maintained a policy of fiscal and monetary responsibility to encourage the development of the private sector. We are also undertaking a mass privatization programme to transfer nearly all State-owned enterprises to private ownership. We believe that the private sector will be the engine of growth in Armenia and an important source of employment opportunity. We welcome the participation of foreign investors in this process without restriction, and we have a completely open foreign trade policy. 20 Of course implementation of our economic policy has been hampered by the situation in the energy sector, which remains critical. Therefore, the only viable, effective short- term solution to Armenia’s energy crisis is the restarting of the Metsamor Nuclear Power plant, which is under way. Armenia, like other States in transition, is in the process of emerging from economic crisis and of laying the