Why the Yerevan City Hall Will Not Donate Backpacks to First Graders This Year

According to the "Joxovurd" newspaper, the Yerevan City Hall will not donate school backpacks to first graders on the eve of September 1 this year. The allocated budget for this purpose has been spent on other initiatives.

Parents of senior kindergarten children, who are about to take their kids to school, told the "Joxovurd" newspaper that in previous years, the heads of administrative districts had given these backpacks to their preferred individuals. This means that many did not receive the gift backpack.

According to the parents, the city hall has warned that it will not grant backpacks this year. Has the Yerevan City Hall made any disclosures regarding the backpack donation process or contacted the law enforcement agencies about this issue? In response, Anna Stepanyan, head of the Department of General Education, stated, "This is the first time I’m hearing about this, because these backpacks have always been distributed during year-end events. I do not believe that anyone didn't receive the backpack for the children. As long as I have worked here, I do not recall any complaints about not giving backpacks to children."

According to Hakob Karapetyan, spokesperson for the Yerevan City Hall, there are known instances regarding the previous practice of supporting first-grade students, where parents have not accepted these gifts or have not used the provided items. It turned out that the city hall was making ineffective expenditures. Nevertheless, socially vulnerable families benefit from the city hall's support in various formats,” emphasized Hakob Karapetyan.

The head of the Department of General Education reported in an interview with the newspaper that this year the funding intended for acquiring backpacks has been removed, which is why children from senior groups will not be receiving backpacks.

For more information, refer to the newspaper’s current issue.