Armenia's cuts to support deepen hardships for displaced Artsakh families, ombudsman says

Only about 1,500 of the 25,000 families displaced from Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) have managed to purchase homes in Armenia over the past two years, Artsakh Human Rights Defender Gegham Stepanyan said on Wednesday.

Speaking at hearings held at the Artsakh Representation in Yerevan, Stepanyan warned that reductions in government assistance have worsened the severe living conditions for displaced families.

“The Armenian government’s decision to scale back the volume of social support and the number of beneficiaries has deepened hardships for the Artsakh people,” he said.

Housing remains the most urgent challenge, Stepanyan stressed. Although a state-backed housing certificate program exists, he said its current design “does not correspond to the real housing needs of the displaced people”.

As of November 20, around 3,500 families had received housing certificates, but only 1,500 were able to use them to purchase property, Stepanyan said. “These numbers show that even with a certificate in hand, people are unable to obtain housing and resolve their accommodation issues,” he added. In communities where the certificate value was raised, property prices increased as well, further limiting access.

Stepanyan argued that the program is insufficient and that large-scale construction initiatives are needed. He also criticized the government for failing to support compact settlement options for displaced Artsakh Armenians.

“In response to our proposals, we've been told that the authorities are not interested in creating ‘ghetto-style’ concentrated settlements. I believe this claim is unfounded,” he said.