World Bank: Job Quality Key to Reducing Armenian Poverty
New World Bank Group report says higher-productivity jobs key to reducing poverty in Armenia
A new World Bank Group report on Armenia's economy identifies higher-productivity employment as critical to sustaining poverty reduction and economic growth. While poverty fell to 21.7 percent in 2024, approximately two-thirds of Armenians remain poor or vulnerable, according to the biannual assessment titled "Armenia's Economic Pulse: Pursuing Poverty-Reducing Growth with More Impactful Fiscal Policy."
The report finds poverty is concentrated in rural areas including Shirak, Tavush, and Armavir, linked closely to low-productivity work in agriculture and informal sectors. Agriculture employs roughly one-quarter of the workforce but accounts for one-third of employed poor workers. The World Bank recommends strengthening job opportunities through skills investments, improving social assistance programs, and expanding formal employment participation—currently only 40 percent of working-age Armenians contribute to the pension system.