Yerevan, Armenia, — A month since the escalation of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh which forced almost the entire ethnic Armenian population to flee, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) calls on the sustained support for the over 100,000 displaced. According to reports, as few as 50 to 1,000 ethnic Armenians are now left in the region. Armenia, a nation with a population of 2.8 million and over 25% poverty rate, could encounter substantial difficulties in meeting the needs of the displaced individuals as winter approaches.
After meeting with displaced Armenians and local NGOs in Goris and Yerevan, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) will support four local partners in distributing essential winter items and ensuring the safety of women and girls.
Kathryn Sokol, IRC’s Emergency Unit, said:
“Tens of thousands of people who fled Nagorno-Karabakh are currently being hosted in Armenian homes and collective shelters. The efforts from the government, local civil society, and neighbours has been astounding, but the displaced population will still need support to meet their immediate needs in the coming months.
“Most people fled very quickly, leaving everything behind. As the temperatures start to plummet, they now urgently need warm clothes for their children, bedding, means to heat their homes and to cook. Having experienced the emotional trauma of sudden displacement, they also require support to recover from the impact of the conflict.
“During our visit, we encountered a family of six staying in a rented apartment, relying on a single small electric heater that was insufficient to warm even one room in mid-October. In another shelter, seven people shared a single room equipped with only three twin-sized beds. The facility had only two showers and toilets to accommodate nearly seventy people, illustrative of the challenging living conditions faced by the displaced population.”
The IRC is working with the OxYGen Foundation for Protection of Youth and Women Rights, Women’s Resource Center, Partnership and Teaching Non-Governmental Organization and WINNET Goris Development Foundationto meet the needs of 1,700 people who have fled, providing people in need with blankets, warm clothes, heaters, and bedding to ensure they can keep warm, as well as creating safe spaces for women in collective shelters. Our partners will also distribute dignity kits and offer initial psychological and legal assistance.