Preliminary Estimate: About 1500 Teachers to Receive Salary Increase of 30% to 50%, Says Prime Minister

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was in Russia on a working visit yesterday, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Pashinyan has since returned from Russia and is leading today’s cabinet meeting.

During today’s cabinet session, it was decided to increase the financial resources allocated for the implementation of 1,162 scientific and scientific-technical activity programs as per the law on the 2021 State Budget of the Republic of Armenia by 2 billion 784 million 565 thousand drams.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, Zhanna Andreasyan, stated that these activities will contribute to the development of directions that arise from the country’s economic needs and are in line with the current demands of scientific research.

According to the project, the majority of infrastructures and material-technical bases of research organizations and scientific subdivisions of higher education institutions do not meet the modern standards of science. The infrastructures and material-technical bases do not ensure the effective use of scientific potential. The vast majority of scientific equipment is outdated, and their technical condition does not allow for high-level research, especially applied research, while maintenance and operation require substantial financial resources.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan mentioned that there have been numerous discussions on this topic. “Simply adding funds in one place does not mean that we will achieve substantive results; it is important to ensure that the investment being made can be absorbed by the system and that the money will be targeted, ensuring that it genuinely serves the development of science. This decision is the result of long discussions,” Pashinyan stated.

Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan also emphasized that salary provisions will significantly change for everyone from PhD students to institute heads in the near future. “We will definitely be able to increase attractiveness by raising salaries,” he said.

Pashinyan assured that according to preliminary estimates, about 1,500 teachers will receive a salary increase of 30% to 50%.