Donors/Partners: Diaspora Armenians Who Own Homes in Armenia, UNHCR, Individual Donors

Implementing Organization: Aleppo-NGO

Program Duration: October 2015-present

Major Goal: For Diasporan Armenians who are willing to allocate their apartments or houses in Armenia to Artsakh Armenian families for a period of at least 12 months.

Background: As a result of the Azerbaijani and Turkish aggression against the Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh, more than 90,000 people were displaced from their homes between September 27 and November 9, 2020. Despite the end of the conflict on November 9-10, 2020 and the return of 35,000 Armenians back to Stepanakert and other regions, more than 50,000 Armenians have become homeless due to the destruction of personal property and loss and transfer of lands to Azerbaijan, namely the territories of Shushi, Hadrut, Kalbacar, Qashatagh (Lachin), and parts of Martuni and Martakert.

Program Description: This program is designed to support displaced families from Artsakh who are currently residing in the Republic of Armenia by providing them with free housing for 12 months, until the Armenian Government is able to provide them with a more permanent housing solution.

Since October 30, 2020, more than 800 families (3,000 people), primarily from Shushi, Hadrut, Kalbacar, Talish, and other territories transferred to Azerbaijan, have registered at Aleppo-NGO seeking financial, housing and humanitarian assistance. Aleppo-NGO conducts periodic needs assessments of each family to ensure adequate assistance.

How Does it Work?

Once a donor expresses interest in providing their Armenia based home to an Artsakh Armenian family for at least 12 months, the donor and Aleppo-NGO sign a contract for at least 1 year and up to 5 years. The contract between the donor and Aleppo-NGO allows the donor to annul the contract by providing a 3-month notice to Aleppo-NGO.

Once the legal paperwork is finalized between Aleppo-NGO and the donor, Aleppo-NGO identifies an appropriate family (depending on the size of the family and size of the allocated apartment) from its database. Aleppo-NGO and the identified family sign a separate contract in which Aleppo-NGO is able to evict the family by providing a 2-month notice to the family.

If UNHCR funding is available, UNHCR may be able to provide $2,500 worth of furniture to furnish the apartment. The furniture becomes the property of Aleppo-NGO and is removed from the apartment if the donor decides to annul the contract or when the duration of contract ends.

If you have an apartment or house in Armenia that you would like to make available for free to an Artsakh Armenian family, reach out to us at info@aleppo-ngo.org.

Current Beneficiaries: 1 Family from Hadrut (See Story Below), 1 Lebanese-Armenian Family and 8 Syrian-Armenian families are currently housed in different Host a Family apartments.

Mr. Arshag and Mrs. Ayda Bedrossian, based in Saudi Arabia, have provided their 3 bedroom apartment in Tavitashen (Yerevan) to the Mr. Nikolay’s family from Hadrut for a period of 12 months. Mr. Nikolay’s family of 8 people lost their entire life’s savings in Hadrut, which is currently occupied by Azerbaijan.