Armenia Mineral Sector Policy II

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Armenia has an abundance of mineral resources such as copper, gold, silver and zinc, as well as industrial minerals such as diatomite, gypsum, limestone, perlite and rhenium salt. In 2011, it ranked 7th in the world in molybdenum production. Armenia’s economy has undergone major structural changes since independence, changing from an industry-based economy to increasingly becoming an economy based on agriculture and trade. The minerals sector represents one of few industrial sectors that have developed in an economically positive way, and it is seen by the Government as having an important role in further development of the country's economy.On a local basis, Mining companies can be significant job providers though, especially as they offer formal jobs in more rural areas where those jobs are rare. “Local Content”, the development of upstream and downstream industries around the mining sector, is less developed in Armenia, but there is string government interest to develop this.Mining, although a potential engine for growth, is also a contested subject in Armenia. There is strong suspicion of mining activities by parts of the population, and in particular civil society. This distrust is largely fueled by a lack of information and dialog between stakeholders, existence of radical CSOs that are totally against of any new mining project and the fact that most metallic mines were developed in the Soviet era under weak environmental and social standardsAll the key stakeholders agreed that the mining sector's future development has to be accompanied by a strong, constructive and transparent dialogue on the future of the sector, between the government, the private sector, civil society and the communities affected by mining activities. In 2015-2016, The World Bank, under the Extractive Industries-Transaction Advisory Facility Multi Donor Trust Fund (EI-TAF MDTF), supported the undertaking of a Strategic Mineral Sector Sustainability Assessment[1]. It showed that, whereas mining is important to the Armenian economy, individual operations are not generally contributing sufficiently to the longer-term sustainable development of the nation. This is in spite of a range of past and ongoing initiatives taken by the regulators to reform the sector. It therefore strongly recommended for Armenia to develop a clear vision and long-term strategy on where the country wants to go with its mining sector; in other words, a Mining Sector Policy. A publicly available stand-alone Mineral sector policy is a useful regulatory tool that serves two important functions:1. it provides the mineral industry with a clear statement of the government's expectations and intent towards the industry,2. it provides lawmakers, regulators and other stakeholders with broad guidance; and helps coordinate between different agencies.The development of a National Mining policy through an inclusive multi-stakeholder process will help establish the appropriate policy framework for mineral sector governance in Armenia, while making sure the sector will develop according to the highest social and environmental standards. With several mining projects in early development stages and an about 50 exploration taking place, now is an excellent time to develop a long-term vision for the sector. This project aims to support the development of a Mineral Sector Policy and associated action plan for Armenia that focuses on strengthening the contribution of the mining sector to sustainable economic growth. The policy which will be the basis for the Governments approach to the sector. The activities of the Project will be concentrated on a) finalization of the development of the Mining Sector Strategy/Policy; b) a legal review to assure that the existing legislation is brought in line with the priorities and objectives outlined in the Mining Sector Strategy/Policy; c) capacity building activities for the line ministries’ staff and d), dissemination of information on the Policy for local communities, industry sector and public servants.