The Armenian government plans to create a framework that will allow agricultural lands abandoned by their owners for decades to be leased to active farmers, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced on Saturday.

The initiative aims to bring neglected agricultural land into productive use while ensuring that landowners’ rights are protected.

During a meeting with locals in the town of Vardenis, Pashinyan explained that under the new law, any income generated from leasing these neglected lands will be placed in a designated account and transferred to the original owner if they come forward.

“You pay the rent for the land, we put that money in an account, and when the owner shows up and asks why their land is being used, we’ll say: seeing that you were not using it, by law we gave it to someone who is. And here is your rent money,” Nikol Pashinyan said.