The United Nations in Armenia and Armenian Missionary Association of America Discuss Plans for Future Cooperation

Yerevan, 18 April 2009 - Today, Ms. Consuelo Vidal, UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative (UN RC/UNDP RR) met with Mr. Andrew Torigian, Executive Director of Armenian Missionary Association of America (AMAA), and Rev. Dr. René Léonian, Representative of Armenian Missionary Association in Armenia. Mr. Armen Baibourtian, Senior Adviser to UN RC/UNDP RR was also present at the meeting.

Welcoming the guests, Ms. Consuelo Vidal gave a brief expose on the recent activities of the UN, international financial institutions (WB, IMF) offices in Armenia aimed at supporting the government to address the social impact of the global financial and economic crisis. She stressed that it is becoming apparent that what started as a financial and then an economic crisis, has the potential to become a human development crisis as well, linked to the increase in poverty.  The damage to human development could be more severe and the negative consequences of the crisis can be more lasting on human development, especially in the regions of Armenia, where there is a high level of unemployment.

The sides underscored the importance of community development projects in the regions of Armenia to support the most vulnerable layers of the society. As the alleviation of the impact of crisis in the regions of Armenia is a common interest of the UN and AMAA, the interlocutors agreed to look into the possibilities of initiating labor intensive and other projects in the regions, targeting the vulnerable groups of the society, especially women. These joint endeavors may become model projects that can be implemented throughout the country in time of the crisis.