Yeghegis, Armenia — October 1, 2007— Yeghegis is a small, rural village located in the mountainous Vayots Dzor marz of Armenia. 75 percent of village inhabitants are refugees from Azerbaijan that are residing there since 1988. The village is extremely poor; roads are in bad condition and during the winter season the village is often isolated from the rest of world.

Yeghegis has also had significant problems with its water supply. Drinking and irrigation water supply distribution networks were old and damaged, and drinking water was either too shallow or too scarce from November until the end of March. The largest drinking water network supplying water, to about 80 percent of village households, was so old and damaged that the water was often not clean, especially after rains and snow melts. The villagers complained of contamination, which was often visible. Water was carried to school and to children’s day center in bottles and buckets every day for usage.

To improve the water condition and the health of the village, a tripartite memorandum on collaboration was signed among IRD Armenia, the Marz Governor and Village Mayor on June 26, 2007. According to that memorandum, the marz would provide support to the project, the village would contribute in form of labor and constructing materials, and IRD would reconstruct the old and broken drinking water system. The U.S. Department of State funded the project in the amount of $19,990. Three water capturing reservoirs (WCR) and a main collecting basin high in the hills, as well as an internal network with eight distribution units, were completely renovated, providing clean water to over 460 villagers.

On September 25, U.S. Embassy to Armenia Deputy Chief of Mission J. Pennington, State Department Director of Humanitarian Programs EUR/ACE Jerry Oberndorfer, IRD Armenia staff, marz Governor Vardges Matevosyan and other local authorities all participated in the opening ceremonies of the water pipeline in Yeghegis.

“Water always supports life and provides hope,” said Melik Babagulyan, mayor of Yeghegis. “We are so thankful to the U.S. government, and cannot underestimate the value of the support so generously provided to the villagers of Yeghegis.”   

IRD started its operations in Armenia in 2001, and currently implements the Essential Medical Commodities Distribution project in the country to assist vulnerable populations by working with local NGOs and municipalities, medical and social institutions.