YEREVAN, November 27. /ARКА/. At a meeting on Thursday, the Armenian government approved the ratification of a loan agreement with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) for the €120.5 million tourism and regional infrastructure program in Armenia.
According to the decision, €96.4 million of the amount are loan funds, while €24.1 million is co-financing from the Armenian government. The program is scheduled to end on August 31, 2030, and the loan funds will be used four months after the end date, December 31, 2030.
The program aims to increase Armenia’s tourism potential through targeted infrastructure and soft investments in several regions of the country. Specifically, it is planned to support the development of seven separate tourism clusters to stimulate wine, resort, adventure, cultural, educational, and ecotourism in the Ararat, Vayots Dzor, Shirak, Tavush, and Syunik regions.
The program will focus on connecting tourists to these clusters and investing in improving the infrastructure of tourist destinations. The program is also aligned with the World Bank’s approach to attracting private capital to individual tourism clusters.
The program consists of four components: promoting integrated and sustainable cluster development, supporting climate-resilient infrastructure and stimulating private sector participation in the local economy, program management and operational support, and a contingent emergency response component.
Specifically, the first component involves the development and consolidation of cluster development programs for Dilijan, Dvin, Goris, Jermuk, and Yeghegis. It also supports the establishment of tourism centres – management offices in the Areni, Dilijan, Yeghegis and Jermuk clusters – through training and skills development, as well as the provision of goods and equipment.-0-
