New jobs, financial support: Armenian aid to Nagorno-Karabakh continues

Armenian aid to Nagorno-Karabakh

In March 2021, 600 new jobs were created in Nagorno-Karabakh thanks to aid from Armenia.

The Armenian government adopted a resolution according to which NK will receive a grant in the amount of over AMD 4 billion [about $8 million] from the reserve budget of Armenia, said Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Mesrop Arakelyan.

In addition, at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, a draft agreement was approved, according to which the Armenian authorities will annually transfer 10 billion drams [about $20 million] to the budget of Nagorno-Karabakh for ten years.

This money will be used to reimburse the property of individuals and legal entities lost during the second Karabakh war.

Financial assistance to Nagorno-Karabakh from Armenia since September 2020 has already exceeded 50 billion drams [about $100 million].

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Enterprises compensated for employee income tax

In January 2021, a program to compensate income tax to employees of non-state enterprises began in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Thanks to this, enterprises got the opportunity to hire new workers, and in March the number of people employed in the private sector of Artsakh increased by 600 people. In the current situation, this is a good indicator,” said Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Mesrop Arakelyan.

In addition, at the expense of 4 billion AMD, which will be allocated from the reserve budget of Armenia, the payment for utilities of the residents of Karabakh will continue. This program has been in operation since September 2020, and now it has been decided to continue it until the end of 2021.

Where will the annual 10 billion go

The amount will go to reimburse the property of individuals and legal entities who lost it in the fall of 2020, during the second Karabakh war. The money will be given to those who have lost “public and industrial buildings, means of production, orchards, vineyards and livestock, agricultural and other equipment.”

If the amount of compensation is less than five million drams [about $10,000], it will be issued immediately, and if the amount is larger, receipts with an annual yield of 10 percent will be issued.

Each of the victims (be it an individual or an enterprise) will receive up to 100 million drams [about $200,000].

Benefits are provided for those who lived in areas that, as a result of the war, came under the control of Azerbaijan:

• individuals will be eligible for 100% interest subsidies for bank loans
• legal entities – up to 50 percent

In addition, over the next three years, residents of Nagorno-Karabakh will be helped to partially or fully repay mortgages, loans for agriculture and small businesses.

PM reports on the work of the Hayastan foundation during the war

During the second Karabakh war, about 120 billion drams [about $240 million] of additional funds were spent from the Armenian budget. 52 billion were allocated from the budget of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a Cabinet meeting.

He stressed that all statements that bonuses were paid to officials from the fund are not true.

From 1992 to September 2020, $247 million were donated to the fund, and during the 44 days of the war – $212 million. These funds will be used to organize the construction of infrastructure and housing in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The cost of the program will be approximately 110 billion drams [about $200 million] and will last for three years. This is the largest program that the foundation has ever carried out in Artsakh,” Pashinyan said.