EU Green Initiative in Armenia (EU-GAIA) is the biggest agricultural support project in Armenia funded by the European Union (EU) and co-funded and implemented by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), and partially implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Impact (Overall Objective):
The overall objective of GAIA is to contribute to the realization of shared and balanced inclusive growth in the Northern regions of Armenia through boosting green agriculture and enhancing local value added.

The project is part of the EU’s Annual Action Programme for 2018 – Regional Development.

Contact information:
Address: Coordination Office for the Technical Cooperation of the Austrian Embassy in Yerevan
26/1 V. Sargsyan street, Erebuni Plaza Business Center, 6 floor

Email: gaia@ada.gv.at
Phone: +374 60 655 955
Facebook: European Union-GAIA Armenia
Instagram: European Union-GAIA Armenia
Website: www.gaiaarmenia.am
ADA website: www.entwicklung.at

To facilitate the development of sustainable, innovative and market-driven agribusinesses in a green and inclusive manner, offering region-specific solutions and an improved enabling environment.

Specific Objective 1:
The policy, legal and institutional environment will be conducive to green, inclusive and rights-based agriculture development.

Specific Objective 2:
Selected agribusinesses will have better access to infrastructure, green technologies, good agricultural practices and markets creating also better employment conditions.

Specific Objective 3:
Selected agribusinesses will be more competitive through access to inputs, equipment, infrastructures and services (to be partially implemented by UNDP).

Specific Objective 4:
Selected organic agribusinesses will be more competitive through access to inputs, equipment, infrastructures and services.

To achieve this, four major directions will be pursued with the generous support of the European Union through the EU-GAIA project:
- Improving Policy and Developing Capacities of Stakeholders. The strategy is to make farmers’ lives easier and attract them to start Green Agri-business through “Green Deal” policy and a valid legal protection. In the end, 5 policy documents will be developed to turn that potential into reality.
Moreover, 300 people from the government, civil societies, laboratories, research centres, universities and colleges will be trained to implement various green interventions. Precision and sustainable agriculture will be taught to students, where they can use and develop smart-tech solutions.
- Providing Access to Green Technologies and Demo Farms: 120 agribusinesses (30% owned/managed by rural women) are given the access to test and use resource-efficient agri-technologies, infrastructure and good agricultural practices in the modern demonstrative educational farms. Moreover, facilities where harvest is collected and processed will be refurbished and equipped to comply with eco-friendly and safe, non-hazardous and zero-waste standards.
- Providing Support to Green Agribusinesses: 120 farmers, producers and processors will receive resource-efficient technologies and ecologically-friendly inputs to run their green business. In the end, their agricultural production will be increased by 15% and 200 ha of land will be registered under sustainable use. Moreover, by having access to the project marketing support services, the beneficiaries can sell healthy and nutritious green food both locally and abroad, especially in the EU markets. This will eventually create more green and inclusive jobs in the rural areas.
- Providing Support to Organic Agribusinesses: 80 farmers, producers and processors who are growing organic food, will receive resource-efficient technologies and nature-friendly inputs to run their organic business. In addition to the innovative transformations, the selected agribusinesses will also benefit from the updated branding and sales management tactics, by selling organically certified food both locally and abroad, especially in the EU markets. Their sales volumes are expected to boost by 15% which will create new jobs in the rural areas and will eradicate poverty, especially among women and vulnerable groups.