UN Armenia’s Senior Team’s visit to Goris, Syunik Region

Syunik, 21 July 2022. The UN Armenia’s Country Team held its monthly meeting in the Syunik region. The objective was to meet and listen to the beneficiaries and partners, including the local authorities of the region, representatives of businesses, women and youth groups, gain in-depth understanding of the local development priorities and challenges and share information about UN programming and key achievements in 2021.

On the sidelines of the visit, the UN Team paid a visit to the UN/UNHCR Goris Field Unit office and visited the women resources center. 

“Our frank and fruitful conversation with the local authorities, particularly with the Governor of Syunik and the deputy Mayor of Goris allowed us to review the impact of our ongoing broad partnership and its direct impact on the population, especially the one left behind and the displaced. We exchanged on the value added of flexible programming and the capacity of adjusting effectively to the needs of the communities within a volatile environment. We agreed on means to support ongoing efforts to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs for the people and to strengthen coordination with the partners engaged in the region. Furthermore, I am very inspired by the openness of the youth and women in business and in local politics, their willingness to create positive change towards a more inclusive, gender equal,  fair and sustainable society and their strive to find solutions to reduce gender discrimination, environmental degradation, access to finance, renewable energy, and much more,” noted the Acting UN Resident Coordinator in Armenia Ms. Lila Pieters Yahia. 

In his speech the Governor of Syunik region Mr. Robert Ghukasyan expressed thankfulness to the UN Senior Team for the tremendous support and commitment to the Syunik Region. Governor emphasized the importance of having this type of coordination meetings more frequently and the need to replicate this model for other communities and regions. He also stressed for all partners to understand the needs of the communities and have their programs responding to them. He underlined the urgent need to  invest in  agriculture while taking into account climate change, security and water management.

The UN Team expresses gratitude to the local partners for the warm welcome and reiterates its commitment to further strengthen coordination and partnership for the benefit of the people of Armenia, not least women, young people and the displaced persons.