Deputy Prime Minister on Support for Artsakh and COVID-19 Prevention Programs

2020 was a challenging year for Armenia, with the government operating under a state of emergency and implementing targeted measures across all sectors. Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan made these remarks during a discussion in the National Assembly regarding the government’s performance report for 2020.

He addressed two main areas: support for Artsakh and COVID-19 prevention programs.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that there are around 20 support programs for Artsakh, some of which are still ongoing. Specifically, he mentioned the ‘Bridge’ initiative that provides a 6-month aid of 500,000 drams to the families of missing servicemen, benefiting 600 families, with a total disbursement amounting to 1 billion drams.

Support for injured servicemen includes a 6-month assistance of 300,000 drams, which triples the 100,000 drams provided by the Defense Fund, with 265 beneficiaries and an expenditure of 200 million drams.

There are two programs for hosting families that offer monthly payments of 30,000 drams in Armenia and 45,000 drams in Artsakh, with a total of 8,410 beneficiaries and 1.1 billion drams already paid out for this purpose.

Full tuition payment for half of the academic year has been granted to 4,210 beneficiaries, amounting to 900 million drams.

Additionally, families of deceased civilians and injured civilians receive one-time support ranging from 1 to 5 million drams, with 56 current beneficiaries and 200 million drams paid out.

Support for injured servicemen totals around 6,500 beneficiaries, with 3.3 billion drams paid out.

Residents of Shurnukh and Vorotan in the Syunik region are receiving one-time support of 300,000 drams, as well as monthly assistance of 68,000 drams over 6 months for 35 beneficiaries, totaling 15 million drams.

Compensation for individuals whose immovable property was damaged due to war in Armenia is available for 77 beneficiaries, totaling 50 million drams.

The largest support program mentioned by the Deputy Prime Minister is aimed at individuals registered in Artsakh, focusing on support for women and children, with 77,420 beneficiaries and 5.3 billion drams paid out.

A one-time payment program of 300,000 drams for individuals who lost their homes due to the loss of control over Artsakh includes 33,981 beneficiaries, with 10.2 billion drams disbursed.

Support for individuals who lost real estate in Artsakh is set at one-time payments of 250,000 drams for 5,276 beneficiaries, with a total of 1.3 billion drams allocated.

Support for children under 5 in Artsakh totals assistance for 13,873 children at 300 million drams.

Thus, according to Mher Grigoryan, the total number of beneficiaries in Artsakh support programs exceeds 150,000. He noted that 6 billion drams have been provided to the Artsakh government as grants and loans.

Grigoryan also announced that the Armenian government will allocate 52 billion drams for a housing construction program in Artsakh, along with a program for individuals and legal entities that have suffered property damage, which he stated will be approved by the Artsakh government by the end of the month, with funding from the Armenian government.

In summary, Grigoryan emphasized that there are three major programs concerning support for Artsakh: social assistance, housing provision, and compensation for damages. “We will work under these three programs throughout the year,” he highlighted.