Nearly 20,000 Artsakh people remain in Armenia, minister says
The Armenian government, being the main guarantor of the social security of the Artsakh Republic, took more than 20 measures to alleviate the situation during last year’s war and the post-war social crisis, Armenia’s Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Narek Mkrtchyan told reporters on Friday.
In his words, these relief measures helped mostly overcome the crisis in the post-war period. Mkrtchyan noted that the vast majority of the 90,000 people displaced from Artsakh as a result of the war have already returned home. At this point, almost 20,000 Artsakh residents remain in different regions and communities of Armenia, the minister said.
Also, Mkrtchyan underlined that a new support program is being implemented, adding the applications are already being accepted.
"We will provide assistance in the amount of 50,000 and 25,000 drams to different target groups. There is no need for mass hospitality in Armenia for our compatriots from Artsakh at the moment. We previously paid citizens to host people from Artsakh, but now we are going to provide the sum to Artsakh Armenians for them to decide how to spend it," Mkrtchyan said.
He noted that more than 100,000 people currently live in Artsakh.