UNHCR enhances the Syunik Family and Children Support Centre in Kapan to benefit local and displaced children from Nagorno-Karabakh

On 26-27 April 2021, in the framework of UNHCR community support and capacity-building activities in the communities hosting families displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) to Armenia, the UNHCR Armenia team made a follow-up visit to the Syunik Family and Children Support Centre in Kapan town, operating under the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, bringing some technical equipment: computers and a printer, and office furniture for the  computer room functioning within the Centre. The new set-up of the computer room was ensured with the joint efforts of UNHCR and the Centre team who were extremely enthusiastic about, and inspired by, the new opportunity made available for the children of Kapan and the nearby villages keen on Information Technology (IT), and in need of social inclusion and new friendships.

“Acknowledging the importance of computer literacy and digital education for displaced children particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, UNHCR helped the community obtain the necessary equipment that will enable the displaced and local children to acquire digital know-how, and engage in online education and self-development activities“, said Karen Khachatryan from UNHCR when handing over the equipment.

As stated by the management of the Family and Children Support Centre, owing to the upgrade of the computer room, at least 30 children from families displaced from NK to Kapan region can now be smoothly enrolled in computer lessons offered by the Centre’s IT specialists and aids.

“Our dream has come true! We are thankful to UNHCR, and we feel proud – at last we have a computer room which can host those many children longing to attend computer lessons, especially the displaced children from NK for whom we’ll always keep the doors of the computer room wide open and welcome them with warmth”, said the Director of the Syunik Family and Children Centre, Ms. Ruzanna Hovhannisyan.

In addition to the expansion of the computer room of the Family and Children Support Centre in Kapan, UNHCR strengthened the capacity building of Kapan by providing the front-line municipality workers with computers and printers.

***

Along with the on-going humanitarian response activities and improvement of collective shelters, UNHCR will continue supporting the communities hosting displaced population from NK to Armenia to enhance their solidarity and burden-sharing in relation to the displaced families, women, elderly and children, in particular. In coordination with the government – through the regional administrations and municipalities engaged in emergency response – since October 2020, UNHCR, through its NGO partners, has distributed packages of hygiene items and COVID-19 preventive tools, bedding sets, foldable beds, warm blankets, winter clothing, electric heaters, kitchen sets, kettles and solar lamps and other items to more than 50,000 individuals displaced from NK, hosted in different communities of Armenia.