Six schools in the Shirak region do not have any first-grade students this year. The schools are in the Haykasar, Salut, Kakavasar, Shaghik, Zarishat, Lernut, and Nor Akhuryan villages. The head of the Education, Culture, and Sport Department of the Shirak regional administration, Hrayr Karapetyan, spoke about this with Aravot Daily.
When asked what the reason for this is, the Shirak regional administration official said, “These villages do not only have an issue with not having first graders. Last year, some of these villages also did not have first graders. We are concerned that we will also have some schools next year from this list that also will not have any first-grade students. That has to do with the birth rate in these villages, as well as emigration due to poor living conditions. They are not good enough for villagers to continue living there. People move to the cities or to other villages.”
Hrayr Karapetyan
The head of the Shirak regional administration Department of Local Self-Government and Republican Executive Bodies, Aram Antonyan, told us that the aforementioned villages are not in extremely poor conditions due to the fact that the majority of residents are involved in agriculture and cattle farming. For example, Haykasar is a small village, but it is not a poor one. The village has seen a lot of development in agriculture and cattle farming. According to Aram Antonyan, there is not a lot of emigration from that village.
Aram Antonyan
According to him, the majority of residents of villages in the united Sarapat and Arpi territory are involved in agriculture and cattle farming as well. So, it is not as if people are unable to make money. Even more, companies involved in dairy production mostly buy milk from Arpi, Ashotsk, and Sarapat.
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After the villages united, several programs were put into place that would allow infrastructure to develop, which, according to Aram Antonyan, encourages citizens to stay and live in these villages.
According to the official, it is difficult to purchase land that would be good for agriculture. There is a lot of competition and interest. People express the desire to own businesses, and people purchase land for agricultural purposes. But those people do not become residents of the villages. It is also promising in terms of tourism.
Nune Arevshatyan
