Eighty per cent of the population in Armenia lives below the poverty line

An Armenian minister has called for the government to tackle economic problems as a matter of urgency. The minister for town planning, Leonid Akopyan, said the gap between the rich and poor had become so great that eighty per cent of the population lived below the poverty line, BBC announces. He said the majority of Armenia's national assets were concentrated in the hands of a tiny minority and that privatization had not benefitted those companies involved. Correspondents say one of the biggest problems for Armenia is that its poor relations with its neighbours Azerbaijan and Turkey means that trade is li