ArmInfo. In 2020, the Armenian government will allocate additional 5.3 billion AMD (about $ 11 million) to implement three programs aimed at improving the demographic situation and stimulating immigration and repatriation. This was announced on October 11 at a press conference by the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Smbat Saiyan.
According to him, in general, the demographic indicators in the country are positive and the trend of population decline seems to show a decreasing trend. Thus, if as of January 1, 2018, the country's population decreased by 13800 people, then as of January 1, 2019 - by 7600 people. At the same time, in recent years, a decrease in the birth rate in rural areas has been recorded in Armenia. "More children are born in cities than in villages, which may adversely affect the overall demographic situation," he said. Thus, as Saiyan pointed out, the programs are aimed primarily at stimulating fertility among the rural population. Saiyan introduced the government's birth control programs:
- The lump-sum allowance for the birth of the first child will be increased six-fold from 50 thousand drams to 300 thousand drams, instead of the current 55 thousand.
- The amount of the one-time allowance for the birth of a second child will be doubled - from 150 thousand drams to 300 thousand drams. In the case of the third and subsequent children, the size of the one-time benefits will not change and will amount to 1 million drams and 1.5 million drams.
- The monthly allowance for working mothers will be increased by about 41% - from 18 thousand drams to 25 thousand drams. Also, residents of rural settlements will be able to receive monthly childcare benefits in the amount of 25.5 thousand drams for two years, while now only working mothers are receiving it.
The state will assist in solving housing problems:
- In 2020, for the purchase of housing on a mortgage, in cases of childbirth, the state will provide one-time financial assistance, and guarantee prepayment in regions of the country.
- In the case of the birth of the first or second child, the state compensates 10% of the down payment (in the regions of the country) and 5% (in the capital) of the main amount of the mortgage loan, after the third and fourth children in the regions the compensation may reach about 50%, and in Yerevan - about 25%. The budget of the preliminary program will be approximately 500 million drams.
In parallel, work will be carried out on targeted housing programs in the regions and the Committee for Urban Development is already doing this.
To note, according to the data of the National Statistics Committee, for the first half of 2019, 16 111 children were born in the republic, which is 0.9% less than the same period in 2018. At the same time, the number of deaths increased by 4.3% in the reporting period, to 13,790. At the same time, the statistics indicate that the largest number of children was born in Yerevan in the first half of the year - 6,378, and the least in Vayots Dzor region - 238.
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