Armenia: Strengthening Capacities of Covenant of Mayors Signatories for Municipal Project Implementation

On 27 February 2025, a capacity-building training was held in Armenia to enhance the ability of Covenant of Mayors (CoM) signatories to develop and implement municipal projects under the state subvention programme. The event provided a platform for discussing procedures, criteria, and progress related to municipal infrastructure projects, with a particular focus on energy efficiency (EE) and renewable energy (RE) initiatives.

The training covered key topics, including:

• Overview of the state subvention programme (2018–2024), including procedures, criteria, and implementation progress of municipal infrastructure projects, particularly in EE & RE.
• Development, submission, and approval of municipal projects, along with implementation processes and challenges
• Common errors in applications, urban planning, and project design documents.
• Key issues in project implementation and monitoring under the subvention programme.
• Planned procedural changes within the programme.
• Results of the UNDP co-financing and technical assistance programme for EE modernisation in municipal and residential buildings.

The event was attended by representatives of state institutions and international organisations, including:

• Ashot Giloyan, Head of the Local Self-Governance Policy Department, Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure (MoTAI) of Armenia (CoM National Coordinator).
• Narine Avetyan, Head of the Territorial Investment Projects Support and Solid Waste Management Division, MoTAI.
• Arkadi Cherchinyan, Head of the Administrative Control Department, MoTAI.
• Ruzan Adamyan, Head of the Department of Construction and Scientific and Technical Standardisation, Urban Development Committee.
• Vahram Jalalyan, Project Manager of the UNDP-GCF “De-risking and Scaling-up Investment in Energy Efficient Building Retrofits” project.
• 30 municipal specialists from 17 CoM signatory communities in Armenia.

During the discussions, community specialists responsible for economic development and subvention projects raised key concerns, including:

• Timely and clear communication of state policies on subvention project prioritisation.
• Challenges in preparing and submitting applications, project documents, and approvals from relevant state bodies.
• Low quality of project design documents prepared by local specialised organisations.
• Issues with unscrupulous construction companies and the need for restrictions on their participation in tenders.
• Weak organisation of technical supervision during construction projects.

Following the discussions, participants suggested that community specialists submit their questions, comments, and recommendations to the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure and the Urban Development Committee for further review and resolution.