The Project is one of the areas of cooperation between the Armenian and Greek governments in agricultural development and is implemented by FAO. The project goal is to provide safe meat and meat products in Armenia. The focus of the project is small and medium enterprises with the skills and equipment needed to produce, store and market this meat and meat products.

The project activities were launched in 2009 and are fully financed by the Greek Government with a budget of US$ 1.6 million. The project will be implemented in close collaboration of the Ministry of Agriculture of Armenia over the period of three years.

The project will support meat sector enterprises through the provision of technical assistance and equipment. It is expected that the private sector will ensure the provision of infrastructure and utilities, and the safe disposal of waste. Small to medium size investments are highly encouraged to take advantage of the project, thus promoting sustainable village/community-based meat sector enterprise development.

In order to ensure smooth and effective implementation of the project a Project Implementation Team has been established involving the major stakeholder representatives. The team provides general supervision of the project; reviews and monitors its progress; reviews the criteria for the selection of beneficiaries; and recommends improvements in project implementation.

The team includes representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Health, the Greek Embassy in Armenia, FAO officers and consultants, and other stakeholder groups, including the Armenian State Agrarian Academy, “Consumers’ Rights’ Protection” NGO.

A technical report on the updated situation in Armenia to describe the functioning and organization of the meat value chains from farm to consumer level, as well as the main constraints which limit successful abattoir operation and management was prepared by a national consultant on meat sector development.

Eligible private investors have been invited to express their interest in construction/renovation, operation and management of abattoirs through a ‘request for expression of interest’ published in the national media in September 2009.

In line with the government policy, the abattoirs will be established under public-private partnership arrangements, and technical assistance to be delivered within the framework of the project will also entail a large amount of legal issues. National and international legal consultants have been involved to support the Ministry of Agriculture in determining current legal framework for animal hygiene and abattoirs and local conditions for and experiences in public private partnerships.

This consultancy has also guided the legal aspects of the implementation of the project and provided recommendations for further legal inputs in view of developing and advising the design, terms and conditions, and specific clauses of a draft contract for the public-private partnership.

Necessary criteria for a full public tender were developed and reviewed by the Project Implementation Team, and the expressions of interest were screened. Twenty-five detailed proposals on construction, operations and management of abattoirs were received from private sector representatives as a result of the “Request for Proposals” advertised in the national press in February 2010.

The proposals were evaluated by the Project Implementation Team based on the criteria developed, and as a result of the entire selection process, only nine proposals were deemed adequate by the Project Implementation Team.

The shortlisted proposals on the construction, operations and management of abattoirs were assessed and relevant technical specifications for abattoir equipment were prepared for the selected beneficiaries.

The project will provide technical assistance to develop sample layout designs, and will supply technical equipment and design tailored training materials required for the abattoirs.

A national consumer awareness campaign and education on meat safety and hygiene will be delivered in collaboration with Non-Governmental Organizations and other parties concerned. The campaign aims to raise awareness on meat safety and hygiene among consumers through multimedia materials, press articles, TV spots, public debates and email/blog, and other communications channels.

Technical assistance also included a recommendation on a tailored licensing system for progressive stepwise improvement of the abattoir sector in Armenia. Currently there is no detailed regulation on abattoir registration or licensing in the country. Therefore it was recommended by FAO that the Ministry of Agriculture considered a national abattoir licensing system to promote a gradual but progressive improvement in meat safety and hygiene. This is considered essential to the success of the project.

Submitted by: Armen Sedrakyan 

Project: 2010