President Serzh Sargsyan visits Syunik Marz

President Serzh Sargsyan paid today a working visit to Syunik Marz. During the visit, Armenia’s president familiarized himself with the construction status of the Shaki-Sisian-Tolors road and had a meeting with dwellers of the beneficiary communities. The road, which is being restored, has a total length of 29.03 km and is composed of two sections. The total cost of the program amounts to about 2.5 billion drams. The construction of the first section (from the Yerevan-Yeraskh-Goris-Meghri-Iran border interstate highway to the end of Sisian) started on 03.06.2015 and is expected to finish on 27.10.2016. According to the executives, about 7.9 km of the present 9.94-km road has been asphalted. The construction of the second section (from the end of Sisian to Dastakert) started on 11.06.2015 and is expected to finish on 04.12.2016. The second section, the length of which is 19.094 km, is planned to cover with gravel along its 10.27-km part and with fresh asphalt along its 8.82-km part. It was reported that the gravel road construction has finished and about 7.8 km of the 8.82-km part has been asphalted.

Afterwards, Serzh Sargsyan left for Goris where he attended the opening ceremony of the ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade Office in company of ContourGlobal Vice-Presidents Garry Livesly and Karl Schnadt. The president familiarized himself with the activities of ContourGlobal, an international energy producing company, and with the programs of its Armenian office. He then visited Tatev HPS, a part of ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade, where he got introduced to the HPS’s activities and the cascade modernization program.

Serzh Sargsyan had a meeting with dwellers of Sisian and Goris, talked about the issues of concern and touched upon the urgent problems of the mentioned towns.

In the Syunik community, Armenia’s president familiarized himself with the construction works of Syunik Food CJSC, a can factory. The construction works, the total cost of which amounts to 700.0 million drams, started in November 2014 and are expected to finish in April 2016. According to the executives, the 5200-km piece of land includes a workshop, a raw materials and product warehouse, a domestic building, a drying room, a boiler-house, a material storehouse and an electric substation.

During the program implementation, around 50 employees have been engaged whose average monthly salary totals about 150.000 drams. After its launch, the can factory plans to employ about 200 people with two relays and average monthly salary of 90.000 drams.

Later on, Serzh Sargsyan left the Syunik community for regional capital Kapan where he visited the renovated N2 High School. The president had visited this educational institution also in 2013 when the construction works envisioned by the RA government’s 2011 Educational Object Construction Program were underway and the learning process was being organized in town’s other schools. Armenia’s president toured the primary school which has been reopened after the renovation, familiarized himself with the conditions and talked to the directorate and teachers. The total reconstruction cost of Kapan’s N2 High School amounts to 933.6 million dram.

The president was presented that the educational complex is composed of educational and gymnasium buildings. The complex can hold up to 450 pupils (presently there are 327 pupils). The educational building has three floors and a basement. The previous gymnasium building has been renovated. The whole territory of the complex has been enclosed and improved. The territory includes a tennis court, a recreational zone and is equipped with a lighting system. According to technical requirements, gasification, water supply and internal and external sewerage networks, as well as electricity supply lines have been installed. The school has been provided with new property. In the 2015-2016 school year, the complex employs 39 teachers with an average monthly salary of 129.000 drams.

In Kapan, Serzh Sargsyan also attended the opening ceremony of a modernized medical center. Owing to the newly-opened center, the population of Syunik Marz and especially the Kapan region will be provided with first hand qualified, affordable and up-to-date medical services. The hospital has been renovated and has been saturated with property and equipment by the RA Ministry of Healthcare within the frames of the loan program financed by the RA government and the World Bank. During the tour at the medical institution, the president was introduced to the working conditions created and to the medical services offered. It was noted that during the modernization process, the hospital has been equipped with tele medical capabilities. The two buildings’ roof covers have been fully replaced, the partitions have been renovated, new medical elevators have been installed, the doors and all the internal engineering infrastructures have been replaced. New ventilation, nursing call and fire alarm systems, as well as computer and internal phone networks have been assembled. The resources economized during the competitive procurement process have been used to install a new heating and hot water boiler, a diesel generator, as well as to improve the center’s outdoor space, e.g. asphalting, installation of an outdoor lighting system and curbstones, renovation of the space fence. A new overground pedestrian crossing has been built between the two buildings and the electric power station has been renovated. Within the frames of the program, Kapan’s medical center has also been saturated with up-to-date medical equipment, furniture and accessories. The center has been provided with a high-productivity multifunctional roentgen complex, a three-dimensional ultrasound diagnostic device, an artificial lung ventilation apparatus, a defibrillator with a synchronization option, as well as with modern laboratory and other devices. The operating-room has been saturated with necessary modern tools. Within the frames of the additional loan program envisioned by the second phase of the Healthcare System Modernization Program, an investment worth of 1.4 billion AMD (about 3 million 154 thousand USD) has been made in Kapan Medical Center CJSC.

As part of his working visit to Syunik Marz, Armenia’s president also visited regional capital Kapan’s Central Square which has been reconstructed and improved. Here the president took part in the opening ceremony of up-to-date fountains with a light and sound system. Serzh Sargsyan got introduced to the works the total cost of which amounts to about 570 million AMD. Pursuant to the agreement between the Kapan Municipality and Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine CJSC signed on 17.05.2013, the improvement and reconstruction of Kapan’s Central Square was transferred to Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine for a 25-year term. The total space of the improved areas, including water and green areas, comprises about 2600 sq. m, which includes the fountains, the green areas, as well as leisure and walk zones.

The program implementation started on 04.06.2014 and finished on 28.08.2015. During that period, the contractor companies engaged 65 permanent employees with an average monthly salary of 260.000 drams.

In Kapan, the president also partook in celebrations organized in the run up to Town Day.