The EBRD-funded Business Support Office (BSO) in Armenia has launched an innovative initiative to help local enterprises cope with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy.

 

In cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and the Investment Support Centre the Bank is providing free access to 23 free webinars for local businesses on various priority topics to deal with the crisis. The webinars are being led by renowned business consultants and advisers offering advice on topics such as cash-flow management, business strategy, force majeure and contractual obligations, how to use government loans and grants, bankruptcy risks, digitalisation, planning after crisis in times of crisis and many more.

 

Two seminars per day scheduled in between 1 until 17 April addressed immediate issues that small and medium sized-enterprises in Armenia face during the current crisis. Up to 200 companies tuned in to listen to the advice from experts at each session. The full playlist of webinars is available on YouTube for those businesses that were unable to access the live broadcast, including follow-up presentations and practical tools for businesses to use.

 

The webinars have been designed to address pressing needs of the Armenian business community. In response to the crisis, the Business Support Office and the Investment Support Office shared a questionnaire with businesses. 1,300 companies responded and this feedback is directly reflected in the programme which covers 23 subjects. In parallel, the BSO invited consultancy companies and consultants to provide pro bono consultancy or webinars to businesses. 50 consultants already registered to offer their services.

 

Following this initiative, BSO, in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and the Investment Support Centre, is planning to launch the second phase, which includes individual consultancy sessions made available as Eventbrite tickets. More than 500 tickets will be made available to interested companies in the next few weeks.

 

“The EBRD is strongly committed to supporting Armenia. We work to assist our clients in the financial sector and the real economy, and we also offer our help to the authorities. We constantly explore new opportunities. The EBRD has unveiled a first emergency “Solidarity Package” to help companies to cope with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and we are already working on increasing our engagement”, said EBRD head of Armenia, Dimitri Gvindadze.

 

‘’This crisis presents many challenges. It might also be offering opportunities to agile companies which react quickly and adapt to the new circumstances. We are trying to support businesses to mitigate the impact of the crisis and to harness new opportunities. We are glad that Armenian business consultants joined our initiative’,’ added Gevorg Poghosyan, head of the Business Support Office in Armenia.

 

‘’We are thrilled to see that the webinars proved to be successful as the topics were developed thorough the survey filled out by 1300 businesses outlining their problems and needs.  The results also helped us in shaping the assistance packages to minimize the economic impact of the coronavirus in the country. We are proud that consultant’s community in Armenia has demonstrated utmost readiness and professionalism by providing abundant content and addressing each question raised during the webinars. We see this platform joint initiative of the BSO and the Ministry of Economy, is a long-term data which will serve as a basis to help the business community in Armenia', said Deputy Minister of Economy of Armenia, Naira Margaryan.

 

The BSO, established in 2007, with the funding from the EBRD, leads a platform of public and private dialogue under the patronage of the Government of Armenia and the Ministry of Economy of Armenia.

 

The EBRD is a leading investor in Armenia and combines investments with support for reforms that help improve the business environment and mobilise investment from other sources. To date, the Bank has invested up to €1.4 billion in Armenia through a total of 183 projects.

 

 

  -   Press release