At a parliamentary session today regarding the ongoing coronavirus-related medical and economic crisis, PM Nikol Pashinyan announced that the government will adopt five social assistance packages at tomorrow’s cabinet session.

Pashinyan was responding to a question posed by Bright Armenia MP Taron Simonyan regarding the closure of certain factories and workshops in the country and how the funds would be targeted.

Simonyan wanted to know what business would receive such assistance and whether the employees of such businesses would continue to pay receive wages.

The MP said that some of these businesses receive overseas orders and they cannot process such exports.

Pashinyan responded that the ongoing crisis is global in scope and hasn’t only impacted Armenia.

The prime minister said that financial assistance would be targeted to businesses that do not plan to lay off workers.

Pashinyan said assistance would be earmarked for children whose parents have lost their jobs due to the crisis. He said that such children would receive 100,000 drams monthly ($200) in assistance.

Companies that haven’t reduced the number of workers after the state of emergency will transfer the salaries of some employees to the government.

“That is, we are going to give a grant to these companies. There will be solutions to all the issues raised here. We hold consultations daily on all the segments you mention,” Pashinyan said.

He emphasized that assistance would be targeted to those businesses that are competitive, conscientious, legal and are viable in the long-term, meaning that there will be no support for businesses that would have closed regardless of the coronavirus crisis.