Epress.am News from Armenia
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan's brother, former MP Aleksander Sargsyan, has a monopoly on the export of sheep, said head of the Heritage Party parliamentary faction Zaruhi Postanjyan in parliament today, asking RA Minister of Agriculture Sergo Karapetyan what the ministry is doing to fight against the monopoly in the business of the export of livestock.
The agriculture minister, however, denied the existence of such a monopoly. "If you want to work in this business, I can help you. There's no monopoly whatsoever — anyone can do it. I can say with the utmost certainty, there are no monopolies in the agricultural sector," he said.
The opposition MP also asked the minister why there are no markets for agricultural products in the rural areas of the country, especially in Meghri, or in the north, so that, according to her, residents could trade with Iran and Georgia, and villagers would have the opportunity to sell their goods under favorable conditions. Karapetyan said creating a market in the villages is not expedient, as villagers are producers and agricultural products have to be consumed in Yerevan and in the (larger) cities.
Postanyan countered that her question was not about the creation of markets in the rural areas, but this comment yielded no response from the minister.