RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan assures that the ”New Aleppo” district construction project is in progress and that each and every Armenian must make his or her contribution. At the same time, the minister mentions that the Syrian-Armenians in Armenia must decide whether they want to obtain a home in that district or not. The construction depends on that as well.

“We have all the applications and the amount of money that they are committed to pay for the launch of construction.  But as long as people have not made a final decision, I can’t decide for them,” the minister said in an interview with “ArmenPress”.

Touching upon Hrant Vardanyan’s donation, Hranush Hakobyan mentioned that the amount has been handed over to the Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenians’ Issues NGO, which has been established with the purpose of implementing programs for Syrian-Armenians.

“While we were making plans for construction of the “New Aleppo” district, the late Hrant Vardanyan called me and offered to pay 100,000 dollars and told me it could be used for any appropriate program, and I suggested using the money to implement the “New Aleppo” housing project since it was a large donation. The Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenians’ Issues NGO has opened bank accounts and is in charge of receiving and keeping all the donations. Another 100,000 dollars has been donated from other places. I’m pleased to see that the media are motivated and concerned about this program. I ask those who are concerned why each of them couldn’t donate two dollars to help make this project a success. If each of the 10 million Armenians donated two dollars, we could have launched the project. Before the big talk, people have to participate in the project and see that the money is used wisely. We have to be able to make progress. The more money we collect, the less money Syrian-Armenians will have to spend for the construction of their homes,” the minister added.

According to Hranush Hakobyan, there are 12,000 Syrian-Armenians who have settled in Armenia due to the Syrian war, and the Ministry of Diaspora is trying to solve all their problems. “On 18 July, we decided to extend the deadline for obtaining driver’s licenses until December 31, 2015. By making amendments to different government decisions and laws, we’re trying to make life easier for the Syrian-Armenians in Armenia. As for charities that the Syrian-Armenians are in great need of, in order to not have the Ministry of Diaspora participate in them and become the one providing that assistance, we helped establish the Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenians’ Issues NGO because no matter how much we try to find out which Syrian-Armenians is more in need and which is not, the Syrian-Armenians know better than we do. We delegated the mentioned non-governmental organization to be in charge of that,” the minister said.

The integrated plan for construction of the “New Aleppo” district for Syrian-Armenians is ready. The complex will provide 488 Syrian-Armenian families with homes. The “New Aleppo” district will be located in Ashtarak city, near the highway that leads from Ashtarak to Etchmiadzin. The district comprises two buildings-one for apartments and one for a club where there will be cultural events and healthcare services. The apartment complex will have a swimming pool, a gym, tennis and basketball courts, a kindergarten and a school, if necessary. There will be closed, underground parking lots from where residents will be able to go up to their apartments. Based on estimates, the cost of one square meter for an apartment will range between 500 and 550 dollars, and 350-400 dollars without interior design.

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