GOAM REFUGEE HOUSING PLAN FAILS TO ATTRACT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 002349

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, PRM

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM EAID AM PRM
SUBJECT: GOAM REFUGEE HOUSING PLAN FAILS TO ATTRACT
DONORS

REF: YEREVAN 1411

(U) Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.

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SUMMARY
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1. (SBU) The GOAM hopes to announce a solution to its
refugee housing problem next year, but current plans
depend on international donations that are unlikely to
materialize. Local implementers have concluded the
government plan is unlikely to be financed because it
does not address the housing needs of non-refugees.
International agencies are pursuing alternative housing
strategies. By focusing too narrowly on refugee
housing, the GOAM may miss a chance for international
assistance. End Summary.

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GOAM SETS HIGH GOAL FOR REFUGEE SOLUTION
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2. (SBU) According to the local UN Development Program
(UNDP) coordinator, President Kocharian wants to
announce a solution to Armenia's refugee housing
problem during his speech to the UNGA in 2005. He
charged the Prime Minister and the cabinet with
implementing a solution by that time. The plan
developed by the Department of Migration and Refugees
(DMR) would house the 3,470 of the "most vulnerable"
refugee families. On June 1, the president declared
the GOAM's acceptance of this plan, directed the
Government to allocate five million dollars over the
next three years for refugee housing, and authorized
the Department of Migration and Refugees (DMR) to seek
an additional thirteen million in funding from
international donors (reftel). According to Western
NGOs, Armenia has approximately 80,000 refugees from
its war with neighboring Azerbaijan.

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PROPOSAL FALLING FLAT
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3. (SBU) The international community has not embraced
the GOAM housing proposal for several reasons. Because
of IMF "Midterm Expenditure Framework" restrictions,
the GOAM has been unable to allocate money for the
program in the 2005 budget, and international
implementers are unwilling to wait until 2006 for a
coordinated strategy. UN agencies advocated a
comprehensive approach to house vulnerable families
regardless of refugee status because they felt a
comprehensive plan would link with economic development
goals and more effectively attract World Bank funding.
The GOAM, however, rejected this proposal in an attempt
to give Kocharian a purely refugee solution by his
stated deadline. (Note: While the GOAM proposal is
ostensibly modeled on USAID's successful Earthquake
Zone Recovery Program, the Armenian proposal lacks a
strict system of financial accountability. End Note.)
DMR Head Gagik Yeghanian stated that he hopes the USG
will fund a large share of the proposal. Department
representatives of the Bureau of Population, Migration,
and Refugees informed Yeghanian in a meeting September
23 that the USG could not fund any part of the
proposal, but Yeghanian insisted he still believed the
USG can find a way to significantly contribute.

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ALTERNATIVE DIRECTIONS
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4. (SBU) International organizations will continue
their housing assistance programs in Armenia but will
not coordinate them through DMR proposed refugee
program. UNDP plans to fund a USD 60,000 study of the
housing needs in Armenia which it hopes will result in
a housing program for non-refugee families funded
through the World Bank. The UN High Commissioner for
Refugees will focus its efforts on rural areas, where
housing costs are significantly less expensive than in
the larger cities. This year the agency will partner
with the governor of the Syunik region who will
contribute one-third of the housing costs. Together
they hope to house the 101 refugee families living in
"domik" shipping containers or collective centers in
that region. And the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
has begun a program of refurbishing apartments and
relocating refugees in Yerevan in conjunction with
local landlords. Armenian law does not allow landlords
to evict refugees from privatized buildings unless the
refugees are provided with alternative housing. Under
the NRC program, landlords give NRC between USD 20,000
and 30,000 per building, NRC renovates another existing
building for the refugees, they move to the renovated
location, and every family receives the title to their
apartment.

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COMMENT
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5. (SBU) The GOAM refugee housing plan will not die
easily: given political pressure, members of the
Government appear to be unwilling to examine
alternative solutions even though they might have a
greater chance of success. UNDP, with the concurrence
of UNHCR and the NRC, states that it would still
welcome GOAM participation in the creation of a broader
housing strategy which would include refugees, but
these agencies frankly do not expect such cooperation
to be forthcoming. By framing the problem too narrowly
the GOAM may miss its best near-term chance to improve
housing for refugees in Armenia.
EVANS