KHOROG, January 22, 2009, Asia-Plus  -- According to the GBAO committee for economic development and investments, monetary savings of the population in Gorno Badakhshan have nearly doubled.

Monetary savings of the population rose 83 percent in the year to December 31, 2008, reaching 24.7 million somoni, the source said.  As of December 31, 2007, the GBAO population’s monetary savings had amounted to 13 million somoni.  Two thirds of these savings are remittances from abroad.  An average annual interest rate for deposits of physical entities is 14 percent.

In the meantime, 36.6 million US dollars were remitted to banks in the region last year, which was 2.8 times more than in 2007, the source added.