"Textbooks for forcibly displaced children are free" - Andreasyan

Over 13,000 children who have been forcibly displaced from Artsakh are now enrolled in our schools, making up about 62 percent of the targeted group. Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Armen Ashotyan announced this during a government meeting on October 12.

“The number of children is increasing by several thousand each day. I believe that by the middle of next week we should try to fully include these children in schools. We are encountering some issues with organizing transportation services in specific locations. These are areas where children are grouped together in larger numbers, in temporary shelters, guest houses, and recreational areas. Those issues are also being addressed,” said the minister.

“In parallel, the additional textbooks related to this matter have already been ordered this week, and children will be provided with textbooks for free. There is no payment required for them. Of course, we are trying to direct children to schools where there are available spots, and if those spots are already filled, we will enroll them in schools that are overloaded,” the minister added.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated, “Our policy should be to ensure that we do not allow overcrowding in schools. First, it will cause tension and also negatively impact the quality of both old and new students. Everything must be done to ensure that we do not encounter such issues at least in the medium term.”