For Immediate Release
May 11, 2007

ARCHUT VILLAGE: ARMENIA FUND BRINGS PIECES TOGETHER

NEW YORK, New York – Armenia Fund USA is pleased to announce that Archut village in Armenia will benefit from the agricultural development initiative that started in Karabakh. Armenia Fund in Yerevan transferred agricultural technology and supplies to Archut to help family farmers there in crop cultivation and seasonal agricultural activities. Access to upgraded equipment is an important part of the Fund’s Agricultural Initiative which also involves creating jobs and providing improved agricultural practices for rural communities.

Archut village in Armenia receives new agricultural machinary

Since the collapse of the Soviet central planning system, villages in Armenia and Karabakh have been facing serious difficulties, a major problem being lack of agricultural machinery. The agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and upgraded technology. To address this need, Armenia Fund has made providing access to updated agricultural equipment an important part of the region’s development plan.

The Regional Development Program started in Mardakert region of Karabakh in spring of 2005. In 2006 the program was expanded to Hadrut region. An important economic underpinning of the initiative is the establishment of agricultural development associations in all major regions. New tractors, combines and other agricultural equipment were shipped to Karabakh from China and Belarus. The project registered success in the first cluster of villages in Mardakert, and now villages in Armenia, like Archut in Lori Marz, are also beginning to benefit from it. “New tractors are of great help to the 480 small households in the village,” says Vardan Khachikian, a resident and head of the village that has just received new agricultural technology from the Fund. “This is not the first time during the 17-year existence of Archut that Armenia Fund renders assistance to our communities in different ways”, he notes with gratitude.

In 2000, Armenia Fund built a secondary school in Archut, and later furnished its classrooms. The French affiliate of the Fund is spearheading the initiative which currently extends beyond classrooms to include sport and other facilities for the school.

Archut is reviving today with new hope for a better life. The village is relatively new, as it was established in 1989 and has 1500 inhabitants, most of them refugees of war. Its residents are resilient, hardworking, and are a great encouragement for Armenia Fund as it paves the way for a better quality of life.

ABOUT ARMENIA FUND USA: founded in 1992, was one of the first of Hayastan All-Armenian Fund’s 19 international affiliates and serves constituents in all states east of the Mississippi. As a non-profit, non-governmental, nonsectarian organization, the Fund represents all Armenian constituents. Armenia Fund USA is the largest contributor among the 19 international affiliates – supporting strategic infrastructure projects in Armenia and Karabakh. The Fund has adopted a policy to go “Beyond Bricks and Mortar” to provide sustainability for projects it sponsors.

To learn more about Armenia Fund USA, please visit our website at
www.ArmeniaFundUSA.org or call us at 212-689-5307.

Armenia Fund USA
80 Maiden Lane, Suite 301
New York, NY 10038