Armenia’s border villages: help with gas and electricity bills extended until 2028
- Published
- Place
- Yerevan, Armenia
- Event date
- Past event —
Summary
Residents of 82 border villages in Armenia should keep their social assistance for one more year, until 1 January 2028. The government has tabled a bill to that effect, which received a favourable opinion from the parliamentary committee on territorial administration on Wednesday, 11 November. Without it, the scheme would end on 1 January 2027. The assistance, in place since 2015, covers up to half of gas, electricity and irrigation water bills. It also pays for school textbooks and compensates families of mine victims. It covers 13 communities in five provinces and cost about one billion drams in 2025. The government wants to use the year to check whether the programme really helps those who need it. The bill still has to be voted on in a plenary session.
The bill was presented by Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Arnak Avetisyan. “During this one-year period, we will assess the programme’s effectiveness. That is why we propose extending it for one year this time,” he told MPs. The goal, he said, is to improve the scheme as much as possible.
The government approved the initiative on 1 October. In the same decision, it instructed the finance minister to assess the programme and submit the findings by 1 August 2027.
What residents receive
The core of the scheme is bills. Residents of the settlements concerned pay up to 50% less for gas, electricity and irrigation water. Providers apply the reduction directly on the bill, then send their calculations to the regional governors’ offices. Families have no paperwork to do.
The programme also reimburses school textbooks. It provides compensation for the families of people injured or killed by mine explosions. Finally, the state pays residents’ property tax on agricultural and residential land, and on the buildings on it, transferring the money directly to the community budget.
One billion drams a year
Asked by committee deputy chair Vahe Galumyan, Arnak Avetisyan put a figure on it: about one billion drams, or nearly 2.8 million dollars, in 2025. A similar amount is planned for 2026 and in the draft 2027 budget.
The programme covers 82 settlements in 13 communities and five provinces along the borders. The compensation for mine victims is a reminder of what living on the country’s edge means. The assistance offsets part of that cost.
Analysis
The government is extending the scheme, but only for one year. That is a signal. Since 2015, the programme has been renewed without much public review. This time, Yerevan wants to know whether the money really reaches the households that need it, as the situation on the border with Azerbaijan has changed since the peace. For the families concerned, the essentials are safe: bills stay lighter in 2027. The real question will come in summer 2027, with the finance ministry’s assessment. It will show whether the aid is kept, cut or better targeted.
Possible consequences
The bill must be debated in a plenary session. The programme assessment is due by 1 August 2027.
