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At March 28 extraordinary sitting, the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs debated and took note of the report on the process and the results of the implementation of the RA Government Programme (2021-2026) for 2023.

The Minister of Education, Science, Culture, Sport and Youth Zhanna Andreasyan presented the programmes implemented in the spheres of education, science, culture, sport and youth.

Underlining that target of accessibility of educational services and raising the minimum qualitative threshold was set by the development state programme of the RA education until 2030, the Minister stressed that the substantive reforms of the general education are aimed at ensuring those targets.

The rapporteur noted that from September 2023, a new general education standard was introduced in the 2^nd , 5^th , 7^th classes of all general educational schools, which before that was experimented in the RA Tavush region. According to the Minister, recently the World Bank published a report on the test of the new standard in Tavush region.

According to the Minister, in parallel with the introduction of the new general education standard, the number of the pupils will decrease in classes. As a result, in elementary and medium classes the children’s number will be maximum 25, and in the senior class – 20, which will have a positive impact also on the quality of the education.

“In schools with up to 100 pupils, taking into consideration the fact that the problem of the density of classes is not topical, other solutions were given: From September, a new order of surcharge, and its beneficiaries are more than 3000 teachers, and their monthly salary in average increased up to 40.000 AMD,” Zhanna Andreasyan underscored.

The Minister stressed that within the framework of the voluntary attestation in 2023, 2976 teachers provided positive result of attestation, who are paid with raised rate, as well as receive surcharge, according to collected points.

Changes of assessment system were made conditioned by the introduction of new criterion.

The Minister singled out the improvement of the infrastructures of schools from the general education programmes, the creation of the laboratories of Natural science, technological, engineering, mathematics laboratories, the school food programme. Zhanna Andreasyan mentioned that our country also joined the School Meals Coalition, according to which, the inclusion of healthy food and healthy way of life is designed by new criteria,

The next important improvement is the implementation of the cultural and sport programmes in the educational institutions. The adoption of the strategy of the Physical training and sport development adopted by the Government in December of the previous year was emphasized, and its goal is to increase the possibility of being engaged with sport in regional settlements. The Minister also presented the programmes implemented in the sphere of culture, underlining that electronic book of tangible and non-tangible cultural heritage was introduced.

The RA Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Narek Mkrtchyan presented the works done in the spheres of labor and social protection in 2023. The Minister mentioned that as a result of the works done, they have reached the completing phase of strategy. He underlined that efficiency of the housing state support programme is high, it comprises 3 components. In the RA border villages, the housing availability programme has allocated 16 million AMD to the persons, who have RA citizenship and registered marriage.

Touching upon the pensions, the Minister noted that their amount will correspond with the consumption basket. Narek Mkrtchyan reminded that from July 1, the minimum pension has increased: 36.000 AMD instead of 31.600 AMD, the military pension of the serviceman with disability – 50.600 AMD instead of 46.000, the pension for a person with disability of grave degree restriction of functionality – 41.400 AMD instead of 36.000 AMD, the pension for a person with disability of medium degree restriction of functionality – 38.000 AMD instead of 33.000 AMD. The old age allowance became 36.000 AMD instead of 31.400 AMD.

A pension non-cash system was introduced in about 1000 or more rural settlements, and 220.00 pensioners made use of it.

In 2023, thanks to grants 35.000 child’s day care was carried out through the NGOs/

According to the Minister, an opportunity is given to introduce a new system of training, which will allow to involve new human resources and the raise the qualification. Narek Mkrtchyan referred to the presence of corruption risks, noting that their majority was revealed by the help of close cooperation of the Unified Social Service and the law enforcement bodies.

The Minister of Justice Grigor Minasyan presented the report regarding the sphere of the Ministry.

“The 2023-2025 programme stemming from the national strategy of the protection of human rights was adopted. It is designed to improve the legislation for preventing the hostile cases of violence, speech of hatred. The training programmes were carried out in that direction,” the Minister informed.

He emphasized the new draft law on Enforcement Proceedings among the reforms, where a number of regulations were included.

There were new reforms in the judicial system which will give an opportunity to unburden the courts.

Grigor Minasyan underscored among the steps of improving the judges’ social guarantees the rise of salaries of the judges of the Court of Cassation and the Constitutional Court.

The Minister also underlined the importance of the new anti-corruption strategy.

During the debate the rapporteurs also answered the deputies’ questions.