YEREVAN, January 21, /ARKA/. A deputy finance minister Atom Janjugazian said today the government has approved a new procedure designed to increase supervision over the spending of off-budget funds by government ministries and agencies.

“Actually the so-called off-budget funds are part of the total budget. Their turnover is reflected in the government’s performance report,’ he said, drawing attention to the fact that there were different procedures about how these funds can be spent. He said the government has established a single procedure, similar to a budget spending process.

Prime minister Tigran Sarkisian urged members of the Cabinet to pay a special heed to this decision, citing local media stories, which lashed out at the State Revenue Committee for reportedly spending over 27 million Drams on organizing a New Year banquet for its employees at a downtown restaurant and purchase of gifts to some of them.

The prime minister described the move as the first step towards making off-budget funds spending open and transparent.

He also urged the ministry of finance to scrutinize all applications, which are to be supported by off-budget funds, which he said amount to billions of Drams, to define their conformity with the ministries’ programs and the government’s interests.  -0-