On April 16, Hakob Simidyan, Minister of Environment of Armenia met with FAO Representative in Armenia, Raimund Jehle and the Special Representative of the FAO Director General, Daniel Gustafson. 

Minister Hakob Simidyan welcomed FAO delegation. He emphasized the good examples for cooperation and the wide scope for further collaboration.  The Minister stressed and appreciated the ongoing 8-year project sponsored by Global Climate Fund (GCF) "Forest resilience of Armenia, enhancing adaptation and rural green growth via mitigation" that was launched in 2022.

Raimund Jehle, reaffirmed the willingness of FAO to advance shared commitment to environmental sustainability through implementation of our joint GCF project. “This project is a great example of our mutual agreement to foster a resilient and sustainable green future. Together, with the fruitful cooperation between the Ministry of Environment and FAO, we seize the opportunity to set a global standard for harmonious development that equally prioritizes economic progress and environmental preservation.” Jehle updated the Minister on the current progress of the project, focusing on key topics such as the methodology for the National Forest Inventory and innovative replanting strategies for upcoming planting season.

“Forest resilience of Armenia, enhancing adaptation and rural green growth via mitigation” is the project funded by Green Climate Fund and co-funded by Government of Armenia, Austrian Development Agency, FAO, Bolzano Autonomous Province and World Wildlife Fund with overall budget of USD 19 million. The primary objective of this initiative is to ensure that CO2 removals from the forest subsector are increased by at least 7% via sustainable climate adaptive forestry investments and fuelwood energy efficiency with effective involvement of communities.