| History |
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The Vahan community was established in 1925 by settlers from the neighborin Azerbaijan village-enclave of Artsvashen village, currently under Azeri occupation.
At first the new community was named Rubenakert, then Orjonikidze. Subsequently, during the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict the community was renamed Vahan, the Armenian term for shield.
Vahan is a border village situated on the road leading from Chambarak to Artsvashen, as the last Armenian outpost.
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| Projects |
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Completed
USAID Nova rehabilitation and furnishing of 2 divisions of medical-obstetrical unit, 2006
ASIF-Local Government Training, Community council Training, school furniture 108 units
Tufenkyan Foundation projects
Ongoing
RA MoA, WB RESCADP-road, irrigation, drinking water, electricity, gas
World Vision-Area Development project
UMCOR, AREGAK- micro-financing
CARD-Agriculture Credit Club Program
UNDP, Armenian Government, EU Humanitarian De-mining Project
MCA-Rural road rehabilitation project
USAID Nova project
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| General Information |
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| Distance from Yerevan |
125 km |
| Distance from Marz Center |
100 km |
| Distance from border |
2 km |
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| Altitude above sea level |
1,965 meter |
| Climate |
Dry Continental |
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| Historical monuments |
Early Iron Age (1000 B.C), Khachkar |
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| Population: |
1255 |
| Households |
430 |
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| Total area |
2850 hectares |
| Of which: |
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| Pastures |
0 hectares |
| Arable land |
0 hectares |
| Orchards |
0 hectares |
| Forests |
0 hectares |
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| Land use |
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| PROGRAM COMPONENTS |
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| Infrastructure Assessment |
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There is an unpaved road from Vahan to Artanish, and it is extremely difficult to use for most vehicle types.
Rehabilitation of 298 bombed apartments destroyed as a result of heavy bombardments need repair.
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| Infrastructure priorities for the rural community of Vahan |
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| Infrastructure |
Priorities |
Total amount needed (AMD) |
Funding sources |
| Road |
13 km reconstruction, 6 km asphalting. |
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Ministry of Agriculture of Republic of Armenia, World Bank Rural Enterprise and Small-scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project Millennium Challenge Armenia-Rural road rehabilitation project |
| Irrigation |
No irrigation system exists. |
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Ministry of Agriculture of Republic of Armenia, World Bank Rural Enterprise and Small-scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project |
| Drinking water |
12 km external pipeline and 6km internal network; major repair needed. |
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Ministry of Agriculture of Republic of Armenia, World Bank Rural Enterprise and Small-scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project |
| Electricity |
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Ministry of Agriculture of Republic of Armenia, World Bank Rural Enterprise and Small-scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project |
| Gas |
System needed. |
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Ministry of Agriculture of Republic of Armenia, World Bank Rural Enterprise and Small-scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project |
Kindergarten
School |
Rehabilitation of the school heating system, furnishing/equipping. |
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| Health Care |
Medical station repair, furnishing/equipping. |
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| Telephone: Cell / Land |
Incomplete coverage, old analog system exists, most households connected, low quality. |
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| Internet |
Not available. |
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| TV, radio |
No regular TV reception. |
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| Community / Cultural Center |
In need of repair/new furnishing. |
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| Lighting and Landscaping |
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United Nations Development Program, Armenian Government, Euoropean Union Humanitarian De-mining Project |
| Other |
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World Vision-Area Development project |
| Other |
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United Methodist Committee on Relief, AREGAK- micro-financing |
| Other |
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Center for Agribusiness and Rural Development-Agriculture Credit Club Program |
| Other |
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United States Agency for International Development Nova project |
| TOTAL NEEDED |
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| Economic Assessment |
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The community has a total area 2,850 hectares, 751 hectares of which are pastures, 634 hectares arable lands, and 759 hectares grassland. There are 1228 livestock, 7 beehives, 1115 poultry.
The economic weaknesses are, first of all, vulnerability of local agriculture (due to severe climate) and lack of irrigation system.
To successfully accomplish any economic initiative in Vahan the issue of irrigation as a precondition should be addressed. For example, surrounding mountains house significant water reserves: spring waters, melting snow and rain water. Those waters could be collected through hthe construction of dams and other water collection and/or direction mechanisms.
Once irrigation is in place it would be possible to produce juicy and protein rich fodder clover, beet, and similar crops. This will not only provide for increased milk productivity milk productivity by as much as 15-20%, but more importantly, it will minimize the impact of climate fluctuations on milk production, thus making the whole process more manageable.
Artificial insemination of local Grey Caucasian cows or the purchase of highly productive breeds such as Holstein and Schwitz will add to the value of livestock related economic development. These could substantially enhance the productivity up to 4,000-5,000 liters of milk annually. Thus profit from milk production will be at least doubled.
To make the animal husbandry sector industrially more complete and consequently more profitable it is proposed to establish a small modern meat processing factory in the community. To produce meat products, a small slaughter house must be built in tandem to the meat processing factory.
Another economic development initiative will be the establishment of a potato seed-growing farm in Vahan. This community has demonstrated considerable potential for such an initiative, and if the question of irrigation is resolved, then the produced potato seeds will be sold to many potato growing communities not only from Chambarak sub-region but also from other villages of Gegharkunik Marz, the major potato producing region in Armenia.
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| Images from Vahan |
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The Armenia Fund Launches Khashtarak Health Clinic Restoration Project