Report and Recommendations on the Armenia’s government's Housing Program for Forcibly Displaced Artsakh People

The Artsakh Union prepared and published a report and recommendations regarding the Armenia’s government's housing program for forcibly displaced Artsakh residents, and the Initiative for Ensuring the Needs of the Artsakh People, consisting of about 40 non-governmental organizations, expressed support for the document.

The report contains analysis of the main principles of the program adopted on May 16, 2024, a brief description of the current situation and proposals for significantly improving the current program, with appropriate justifications and appendices.

As a result of the analysis of the program, a number of issues and challenges were highlighted that hinder its effective implementation. These problems can be classified into several main groups, namely:

1. Low applicability: As of the beginning of October, about 30 families have applied for the program and received a certificate, which is only 0.12% of the total target group. This low rate indicates problems with the availability or terms of the program.

2. Financial barriers: The current program does not take into account the real picture of housing market prices. Especially in Yerevan and other cities, the amount of support offered is not enough to ensure decent housing conditions. Besides, the conditions for construction of residential houses do not even correspond to the minimum budgets of the projects approved by the state authorized body.

3. Legal obstacles: Some requirements of the program, for example, the requirement of Armenia’s citizenship at the time of application, hinder the participation of beneficiaries. Moreover, a number of other provisions cause violations of the rights of various groups of people, which sometimes even contradict the Armenia’s Constitution.

4. Ignoring groups with special needs: The current program does not sufficiently take into account the needs of groups with special needs, such as persons with disabilities and families of fallen servicemen.

5. Problems with credit: Many beneficiaries have difficulty obtaining additional mortgage loans, especially if they have previous credit obligations and, mostly for reasons beyond their control, have problems with their credit history.
   For the systemic andfundamental solution of the above and a number of other problems, the document offers reasonable and effective solutions, while presenting factual and legal justifications for them.

The Artsakh Union and the Initiative for Ensuring the Needs of the Artsakh People expect that the Armenia’s government will take into account these proposals, as well as quickly start real and effective public discussions for the fundamental improvement of the program.

The Armenian report is available here.