The company “MTS-Armenia” has recently decided to make a generous donation of 110,000 shares, which represents a significant 20% of its total shares, to the Armenian Government.
This noteworthy event occurred during a government session, where Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan expressed his gratitude towards the company for their exceptional contribution.
The Prime Minister conveyed the importance of such initiatives, stating “I want to emphasize that this is not the only format of people’s presence in companies. I think that in general, we should encourage companies to ensure the presence and participation of citizens and subscribers in the management of companies.” He further highlighted the importance of this in sectors like telecommunications and several other strategic areas.
Pashinyan indicated that through the acceptance of this donation, the government is also trying to send a message to other companies. The message isn’t about making donations to the government, but rather to pursue an open shareholding policy, which would bolster transparency.
He added, “If the exhortations, the support, the request do not work, we have to go to legislative mechanisms,” thereby implying the government’s readiness to implement legislative measures to ensure the same.
Earlier this year, “Viva-MTS”, a communication operator, announced its separation from Russian “MTS”. The company was sold to FEDILCO GROUP LIMITED, a company based in Cyprus. At the same time, the company revealed its intention to donate 20 percent of its shares to the state without any charges, acknowledging the strategic importance of “MTS Armenia” CJSC for Armenia.
Another company, Lydian Armenia, that is gearing up to operate the Amulsar gold mine, also announced in January of this year its decision to transfer 12.5 percent of its shares to the government. The responsibility to manage these shares was entrusted to the Ministry of Economy. Similarly, in 2021, the Zangezur copper-molybdenum combine generously donated 15 percent of its shares to the government.
