Yerevan, 25 January 2022 – Today, representatives of the Government of Armenia, diplomatic community, international organisations, civil society, and media launched the “Accountable Institutions and Human Rights Protection in Armenia” project, funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented jointly by UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA, and the OSCE.

Within its 24 months of duration, the project will support the reform agenda of the Government of Armenia towards building effective and accountable institutions that are based on the principles of good governance and respect for the rule of law. The key areas of engagement include enhancing the rights-based approaches in public service delivery, promoting security sector governance and reform, as well as fostering the process of constitutional reform. The project objectives will be implemented through three components that are defined on the basis of the national reform priorities in the fields of human rights protection, police reform and constitutional reform.

Andrea Wiktorin, EU Ambassador to Armenia, Karen Andreasyan, RA Minister of Justice, Tatevik Stepanyan, RA Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Natia Natsvlishvili, UNDP Resident Representative in Armenia, Ara Fidanyan, Deputy Head of RA Police, Nico Schermers, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Armenia, and Arman Tatoyan, RA Human Rights Defender, made opening remarks at the event.

Christine Weigand, UNICEF Representative in Armenia, Tsovinar Harutyunyan, UNFPA Head of Office in Armenia, and Paweł Cieplak, Ambassador of Poland to Armenia, Representative of the Polish Chairmanship in Office of the OSCE, presented the key objectives and components of the project.

About “Accountable Institutions and Human Rights Protection in Armenia” project

The project objectives are implemented through three components, based on the most imminent national reform priorities in the following fields:

Human Rights Component is implemented by UNDP, UNICEF and UNFPA and focuses on (i) capacity building of the Office of the Human Rights Defender and Office of the Representative of the Republic of Armenia on International Legal Matters, (ii) promotion of human rights awareness and education, (iii) improved Human Rights Action Plan monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.

Police Reform Component is implemented by UNDP and OSCE, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and RA Police, and supports implementation of the ongoing police reforms, with a special emphasis on the reform of the educational system and establishment of a new Ministry of Interior.

Constitutional Reform Component is implemented by UNDP and aims to contribute to advancement of constitutional reform process through empowerment of key national stakeholders, provision of expert advice and best practices.

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The “Accountable Institutions and Human Rights Protection in Armenia” project is funded by the European Union and implemented by UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA and the OSCE. The project is implemented in close cooperation with the Human Rights Defender Office, Ministry of Justice, the RA Police, Office of the Representative of the RA on International Legal Matters, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and the civil society.