We are working with our partners in Armenia to provide socially affordable housing to vulnerable refugees.

in 2015, along with UNHCR , Oxfam and SARF we provided rental subsidies to almost 1,000 Syrian refugee families that have taken refuge in Armenia.  As a regional host country, Armenia has been an exemplary host country which has welcomed more refugees per inhabitant. It hosts 6 Syrian refugees per 1000 inhabitants (proportionally more than Germany, Sweeden or the USA and Canada). Throughout the Syrian war, Armenia has not housed refugees in camps (like other host countries) nor has there been any cases of refugee homelessness in Armenia.

In 2016, we plan on continuing to augment UNHCR's valuable housing efforts in Support of Syrian refugees despite the 50% cut in UNHCR's budget for Armenia by working with our partner Oxfam Armenia, and our other housing consortium partners from all over the world.  Our plan for 2016 will include an improved social services component for better socio-economic integration and a contingency to receive hundreds of refugee families who continue to seek refuge in Armenia.

The Refugee Rental Subsidy Program in Armenia - delivered through a Consortium of Humanitarian Partners

We firmly believe that providing affordable housing to refugees who have lost their homes is a critical intervention. Keeping refugees in “camps” or “refugee shelters” year after year is neither a sustainable nor healthy solution.

While the Government of Armenia has been providing vital social services to Syrian refugees in Armenia, affordable housing is vital for urban refugees and is in short supply

The Armenian Redwood Project in cooperation with the Municipality of Dilijan Armenia, the National Social Housing Association of Armenia (ASBA), the "Aleppo" Compatriotic Charitable Organization and other partners is undertaking a pilot project to assist Syrian refugees in Armenia to start new lives in the growing city of Dilijan.  the Pilot program will initially involve a limited number of refugee families that will receive a package of various socio-economic benefits and move to Dilijan to start new lives. More on the program soon.

We are currently working with our partners at  the Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenian Issues to help vulnerable Syrian-Armenian Refugee families in Armenia with essential remittances for a specified period.

We have piloted a program with the Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenian Issues in Yerevan, Armenia to give 50 vulnerable families monthly stipends in the form of supermarket cards to assist with purchasing essential needs (food and beverage only, exclusive of alcohol and cigarettes). This is a rotating program and the families will transition off the assistance program after a 6-month period.

We are currently working with our partner American University of Armenia (AUA) to assist Syrian Armenian's continue their adult education. 

A few hundred students will be graduating from Aleppo’s Armenian schools in 2014. There are countless others living as refugees outside of their homes who will need to matriculate to a university in order to advance their education.

We’ve reached out to these students and have a keen understanding of their needs and desire to pursue their education. In response, we are in the process of creating a program to help them apply to universities in Armenia, assist accepted students with relocation and settling into their university lives.

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