Category: News

The Ministry of Labor and Welfare has drafted legislation proposing to extend the program providing a 20% cashback, up to a maximum of AMD 10,000, on non-cash transactions made using pension and benefit bank cards from January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2029, inclusive.

The bill, a draft Cabinet decision, has been submitted for public discussion. It proposes maintaining the existing mechanisms for calculating and paying the cashback.

As of October, 572,590 pensioners and benefit recipients had already benefited from the 20% cashback program, with the average cashback amount standing at approximately AMD 8,150, the ministry said.

The cashback is calculated and transferred automatically when payment cards are used to make transactions through POS terminals at retail outlets and service providers operating in Armenia.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has stressed the importance of protecting democracy in Armenia while commenting on allegations of pressure involving the ruling Civil Contract party against opposition representatives ahead of upcoming local elections.

Pashinyan had earlier called on all candidates and voters participating in local elections who claim to have been subjected to illegal pressure to report directly to him at [email protected].

He had pledged to publicly hold to account any official responsible for such actions if the allegations were substantiated.

“I have received three messages on this matter. One was a public statement by a member of the Strong Armenia faction, in which the MP raised certain concerns, particularly about people allegedly being dismissed from their jobs for political reasons. I have instructed the Inspection Body to conduct an urgent review and provide information. I also received a video showing a child delivering a campaign speech. I forwarded that material to the Anti-Corruption Committee. I also received a message from a citizen who expressed support for our policies while adding that we had nominated a poor candidate for mayor,” Pashinyan said on social media. 

The prime minister stressed that democracy and democratic values are unquestionably a top priority for his administration.

“We are committed to deepening democracy and advancing democratic reforms in Armenia. The challenge is to prevent anti-democratic rule from taking hold in Armenia under the guise of democracy. I am concerned that anyone might claim that an atmosphere of fear has been established in Armenia. At the same time, citizens who feel intimidated for any reason must be persistent in defending their rights. We have defended these citizens’ rights, are defending them, and will continue to do so. If an official exerts pressure on a citizen, and I learn of the incident and it is substantiated by evidence, I will undertake to publicly punish that official. There is a risk that such allegations may not be substantiated, but we cannot dismiss an official based on unverified, unsupported verbal claims without first establishing the facts,” Pashinyan added.

The prime minister also urged voters not to vote for candidates or political forces that use administrative resources, threats, pressure, threats of dismissal, promises of employment, or distribute or promise bribes in exchange for votes in the upcoming local elections.

“If a candidate from the Civil Contract party engages in such conduct, I urge you to vote against that candidate. Separately, report all such cases to me or law enforcement authorities,” Pashinyan said.

Local elections will be held on October 25 in Hrazdan, Artashat, Ijevan, Gavar, Martuni, Goris, and several other communities in Armenia.

Members of Armenia’s men’s and women’s national chess teams, Haik Martirosyan and Elina Danielian, respectively, are competing in the 41st European Chess Club Cup and the 30th European Women’s Chess Club Cup, the chess federation reported. 

The tournaments are being held in Budva, Montenegro, from October 17 to 23.

GM Martirosyan is playing for Romania’s SuperChess Romania team, while GM Danielian represents Luxembourg’s CE Gambit Bonnevoie team.

Martirosyan has scored 2 points out of a possible 2, while Danielian has scored 3 out of 3.

Armenian GM Sergei Movsesian is also competing in the tournament as a member of the Czech team Sigil Fund Pardubice. He has scored 1.5 points out of 3.

Armenia’s Narek Grigoryan, competing in the 75 kg weight category, was named Best Lifter in the men’s junior category at the EWF European Junior and U23 Weightlifting Championships, which concluded in Albania, the press service of the Weightlifting Federation of Armenia reported.

In the final team standings, Armenia’s junior national team finished third on points, while the U23 team placed fourth.

Armenia has expanded the destinations for its flower exports to 23 new markets this year, as the country continues efforts to diversify its foreign economic ties and increase the presence of Armenian products in international markets, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade has said.

“From January 1 to October 12, 2026, Armenia exported 908.6 tons of flowers to 30 countries, including neighboring countries (Türkiye, Iran and Georgia), as well as markets in Europe (14 EU member states, Switzerland, Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia), the Middle East (the UAE and Oman), Central Asia (Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan), and North America (the United States),” the ministry said.

Compared with the same period last year, the geographical reach of flower exports has expanded.

Whereas last year exports went only to France, the UAE, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Georgia and the Russian Federation, this year the list of destinations has grown by 23 new markets.

Among EU countries, Armenian flowers have already been shipped to the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Italy, Poland, Cyprus, Czechia, Romania and France.

The EU’s Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs) for Armenia entered into force on October 10, 2026.

The European Union has introduced temporary trade liberalization measures for Armenian products to support Armenia’s economy following recent trade restrictions imposed by Russia. The preferential regime has liberalized around 80% of Armenia’s exports to the EU. As a result, customs duties have been eliminated on many Armenian goods imported into the EU, including certain agricultural products.

The measures will remain in effect for two years. They cover product categories accounting for nearly 99% of Armenia’s exports of fresh fruit, vegetables and plants to Russia, as well as more than 91% of its exports of beverages and alcoholic beverages.

Women’s direct access to funding, meaningful participation in decision-making and recognition of their contributions to biodiversity conservation were among the key issues raised by the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) Women’s Caucus at COP17 in Yerevan.

At a press conference held in the Blue Zone at the Meridian Expo Center during the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), Caucus representatives presented recommendations on financing, the protection of traditional knowledge and advancing gender equality in biodiversity conservation.

Ana Di Pangracio, Deputy Director of Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN) and a representative of the Women’s Caucus, emphasized that the issue of financing concerns not only the volume of funds mobilized but also access to those funds, decision-making on their allocation and the ultimate beneficiaries.

“Without adequate financial resources, the commitments made by governments remain promises written on paper,” she said.

According to Di Pangracio, who is also Biodiversity Director at FARN, more predictable, adequate and sustainable public funding must be ensured for biodiversity conservation. She emphasized that developed countries must fulfill their financial commitments and that new financing mechanisms must not create an additional debt burden for developing countries, women and communities.

She said that organizations representing women, Indigenous Peoples and local communities continue to face barriers to accessing funding despite their important role in biodiversity conservation, restoration and sustainable use. Complex procedures and short-term financing mechanisms often limit the opportunities available to local initiatives and women-led organizations.

Representatives of the Women’s Caucus called for direct, simplified, flexible and long-term access to financial resources, with women fully participating in decision-making on the governance of financial mechanisms and the allocation of resources.

They also stressed the importance of strengthening accountability mechanisms and environmental and social safeguards, emphasizing that it is necessary to assess not only the volume of funds mobilized or allocated but also their actual accessibility and impact on communities.

Cristina Eghenter, Senior Expert in Global Governance Policy at WWF International (Italy) and a member of the Women’s Caucus Board, stressed the importance of applying the whole-of-society approach in the development, implementation, monitoring and accountability of biodiversity policies.

According to Eghenter, the rights, responsibilities and roles of all stakeholders involved in biodiversity conservation efforts must be clearly recognized. She noted that the blanket term “actors other than national governments” may not adequately reflect the distinct status and contributions of different groups.

She said that the Women’s Caucus, together with representatives of Indigenous Peoples, local communities and youth, had jointly proposed using the term “major groups and other stakeholders” to ensure clearer recognition of the groups participating in these processes.

She also emphasized the need to accelerate inclusive and effective action following the global assessment, noting that the “Yerevan Pathway” could help promote a whole-of-society approach, gender equality and human rights-based approaches.

The 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is being held in conjunction with the 12th meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CP-MOP-12) and the sixth meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing (NP-MOP-6). COP17 marks the first global review of collective progress toward implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).

Preparations for the launch of Benfica Academy Armenia have advanced with a visit to Lisbon by the project’s founder, Alfred Sadoyan, and director, Artur Azaryan, who traveled to Portugal to learn more about the renowned club’s youth development methodology, SL Benfica press service reported. 

The academy, a joint project of Sport Lisboa e Benfica and Football Investment Group, is scheduled to open in the summer of 2027.

Sadoyan and Azaryan traveled to the Portuguese capital to take part in a work program focused on technical training and integration into Benfica’s culture.

Over several days, they met with representatives of various club departments during sessions held at Benfica’s home stadium, Estádio da Luz, and the Adidas Benfica Campus. The meetings aimed to provide a deeper understanding of the working methods, organizational principles and values underpinning Benfica’s youth development model.

The Benfica academy in Armenia will feature a stadium, six football pitches and other state-of-the-art facilities, with capacity for more than 1,000 footballers aged 4 to 17.

The training program will cover different levels of play, from recreational football to competitive teams and elite divisions, offering athletes development opportunities tailored to their age, abilities and individual ambitions. At the local level, this structure will follow the logic of Benfica’s development pyramid, which brings together a network of football schools, training and development centers, and the Adidas Benfica Campus. The goal is to create a coherent training pathway in which the club’s methodology is applied at different stages of young footballers’ development.

“Today, everyone recognizes that Benfica’s youth academy, along with its educational and coaching methods, is among the best in the world, thanks to its approach to developing talent and creativity. We are confident that the same principles will guide our work in Armenia,” Sadoyan said.

In July 2026, the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA) and Football Investment Group announced the launch of the Benfica Academy Armenia project. Under the initiative, the official academy of the renowned Portuguese club Sport Lisboa e Benfica will begin operating in Yerevan in the 2027–2028 season.

The project will be implemented on the grounds of the FFA’s Technical Center-Academy. The federation has granted a section of the facility to Football Investment Group LLC for long-term, gratuitous use to implement the Benfica Academy Armenia project.

The decision reflects the exceptional scale of the initiative and its strategic importance for the development of Armenian football, as well as the fact that SL Benfica’s academy is one of the leading football academies in the world.

An exhibition titled “Witnesses of Time: A Century-Old Square and Opera,” marking the 100th anniversary of Republic Square, has opened at the Tiridates exhibition hall of the Alexander Tamanyan National Museum-Institute of Architecture in Yerevan. The exhibition features historical photographs, including contemporary images provided by the Armenpress state news agency’s archive.

In an interview with Armenpress, museum-institute Director Zaruhi Hayrapetyan said the exhibition will run through November 20.

“We have tried to present a chronological overview, selecting photographs dating from the 1920s to the present day. We are very grateful to the Armenpress state news agency for providing contemporary photographs from its archive. We have also included plans, drawings and photographs related to the historical period, selected from the museum-institute’s collections or acquired through cooperation,” Hayrapetyan said.

She said the exhibition would give visitors an opportunity to appreciate the contributions of the architects who helped shape the square’s architectural appearance.

During the exhibition’s opening ceremony, the museum-institute and the National Archives of Armenia signed a memorandum of cooperation.

“We greatly value the work of the archives, as they are the repository of our people’s memory. The materials related to urban planning and architectural art preserved in the archives are of great museum value to us. The memorandum could help increase the number of joint exhibitions in the future,” Hayrapetyan said.

National Archives of Armenia Director Artur Stepanyan said the memorandum would open up new opportunities for both institutions and enhance their cooperation.

“We already have experience of effective joint work. It is a great honor for us that the National Archives of Armenia has provided unique documents and photographs for the exhibition, making it possible to present the history of masterpieces of Armenian architecture. The memorandum sets clear guidelines for the future, and we plan to expand our joint programs,” Stepanyan added.

The Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Republic of Armenia and Belgium’s Ghent University have signed a memorandum of understanding on the implementation of Armenian studies courses.

The memorandum was signed by Armenia’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium, Tigran Balayan, and Ghent University Rector Petra De Sutter.

According to the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports, the memorandum provides for courses on Armenian culture and history to be offered at Ghent University, as well as workshops, seminars and thematic academic days. Educational modules will also be developed as part of existing courses, and public outreach events related to Armenian studies will be organized.

“The Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports, with the aim of promoting the spread and development of Armenian studies worldwide, cooperates with leading universities around the world, funding the teaching and study of Armenian studies subjects, including the Armenian language, literature, history and culture, as well as the organization and implementation of research projects,” the ministry said in a statement.

Currently, with funding from the Armenian ministry, courses and academic and research activities are carried out at Armenian studies centers and departments at 14 leading universities in 11 countries. These include Sapienza University of Rome, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, the University of Salzburg, Complutense University of Madrid, Kennedy University and the National University of Rosario in Argentina, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Democritus University of Thrace, and Cairo University, among others.

The number of universities involved increases each year, expanding the geographical scope of cooperation and ensuring the continued development of Armenian studies education and research. Strengthening cooperation among Armenian studies centers and increasing the visibility of Armenian studies in international academic circles are considered key priorities of state policy.

The statement also emphasizes that, recognizing the importance of the effective operation of Armenian studies centers and the expansion of international cooperation, the ministry continues to support their development, helping implement new educational and research initiatives, facilitate the exchange of academic expertise, and ensure the sustainability of Armenian studies.

Greenpeace representatives have called for increased biodiversity funding, an end to subsidies that harm nature, and stronger protections for the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities as key priorities at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17) in Yerevan.

At a press conference in Yerevan, Greenpeace representatives stressed that decisions made at COP17 will be crucial to achieving global biodiversity targets by 2030. They said the priority should not be to introduce more declarations and initiatives, but to fulfill existing commitments and address outstanding challenges.

An Lambrechts, head of the Greenpeace delegation to CBD COP17, said COP17 was an important milestone on the path toward the 2030 targets. According to Lambrechts, assessments of global progress on biodiversity conservation show that the international community is significantly behind schedule.

“We need adequate resources directed toward the right objectives. Rights must be at the heart of implementation, and global and national policies must be interconnected, coordinated and consistent with one another,” Lambrechts stressed.

She also emphasized the need to implement the decisions adopted at COP16 in Cali, particularly those concerning funding for the Cali Fund and ensuring the effective participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

According to Lambrechts, companies that derive the greatest benefits from digital sequence information (DSI) should make a fair contribution to biodiversity conservation. She stressed that major corporations profiting from the destruction of nature must be held accountable.

She also called for the protection of the right to self-determination of Indigenous Peoples and local communities and for their full participation in decision-making processes.

“We do not need new declarations and initiatives from this conference simply to increase their number. We need an action-oriented response to the problems that have already been identified,” Lambrechts said.

The biodiversity financing gap remains one of the main challenges.

Irène Wabiwa, biodiversity programme manager at Greenpeace International, stressed that developed countries had failed to meet their commitment to provide $20 billion annually in international biodiversity finance by 2025. They must now take action to close the gap and achieve the target of providing $30 billion annually by 2030.

According to Wabiwa, developed countries must not replace their core commitments with attempts to mobilize funding from the private sector. Although business participation is important, public finance must continue to play a central role.

“We are not saying that the private sector should not contribute. It, too, must take on its share of responsibility. However, public finance must be the priority, and developed countries must fulfill their commitments,” Wabiwa said.

She said subsidies that harm nature must be reviewed and countries’ financial capacity to address biodiversity loss strengthened.

“We cannot demand funding for nature conservation on the one hand while continuing to support activities that damage forests and ecosystems on the other,” she stressed.

She also highlighted the need for debt relief or debt cancellation for developing countries. According to her, these countries are expected to conserve forests and biodiversity, while their heavy debt burdens often force them to exploit natural resources to meet their financial obligations.

Laura Caicedo, campaigns coordinator at Greenpeace Colombia, addressed the target of conserving at least 30% of terrestrial and marine areas by 2030.

She said simply designating new protected areas was not enough. Ecosystems must be effectively protected, their destruction and degradation prevented, damaged areas restored, and their long-term conservation ensured.

According to Caicedo, land grabbing, the expansion of livestock farming, mining and infrastructure projects continue to put pressure on natural ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. She stressed that nature conservation policies must be aligned with agricultural, trade, investment and subsidy policies.

Particular attention was also given to the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Caicedo said governments must recognize the role of their traditional territories and governance systems, provide legal protection for community-led conservation initiatives, and ensure that these communities have a genuine influence over decisions affecting their territories.

According to Caicedo, the “30 by 30” target must not be reduced to marking new areas on a map. It must mean preserving healthy, interconnected ecosystems, respecting people’s rights and providing the necessary resources.

The participants in the press conference agreed that progress in the coming years will depend both on the decisions made in Yerevan and on their subsequent implementation in national capitals and at the local level.