The Armenian government has approved a new measure enabling farmers to access interest-free loans.

The subsidy bill was approved at the Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan noted that the government is currently implementing numerous programs aimed at developing the agricultural sector, which is understandable given that roughly one-third of Armenia’s population is engaged in agriculture in some way.

“Here we face a specific challenge: while the government implements targeted programs, one thing we have not had until now is a comprehensive program covering all sub-sectors of the agro-industrial sector, applicable to all farming businesses,” Papoyan emphasized.

He added that one of the key features of this program is that it targets small farming businesses, which, for obvious reasons, often lack the capacity to make significant investments.

“The program provides accessible financial resources for conducting activities in the agro-industrial sector. It is designed for 2026–2027, and the loan limit for each beneficiary under this program is 1–2 million drams. The government will finance the entire interest rate, but the program condition stipulates that the interest rate must not exceed 14 percent. As a result, farmers will effectively be able to obtain loans at zero percent interest,” Papoyan explained.

He added that the repayment term for the loan is up to three years, and farmers will not make any payments during the first six months after receiving the loan; only then will they begin repaying the principal. Another important point of the program, Papoyan noted, is that farmers can benefit from it multiple times.