QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER

Winter 2018, Issue 30

Integration Seminar for Displaced and Marginalized People

Supports Syrian-Armenians

As part of a new initiative started from October from the seminar, each participant prepared a personal
2017 with financial support of Brot für die Welt- career development plan that will also be used to
Protestant Development Service envisioned through further promote the implementation of work practices
the collaboration of Syunik-Development NGO with and trainings for beneficiaries within the framework
the House of Hope Charity Centre Foundation and of the project. During the seminar, Syrian-Armenian
the Armenian Caritas Benevolent NGO, an integration entrepreneur Artsiv Hajinyan shared his own success
seminar to support and provide resources to Syrian- story with participants as a way of encouraging them
Armenians living in Armenia was recently held in to become more active in the process of acquiring new
Hermon Village of the Vayots Dzor Region. The seminar knowledge and skills.
is the first of several planned activities under the
overarching project Vocational Training and Support
for Integrating Displace and Marginalized People to
the Armenian Job Market.
The purpose of the training was to raise the labor
market competitiveness of Syrian-Armenians living in
Armenia as well as other socially vulnerable groups
in Vayots Dzor and other regions of Armenia. Within
the seminar, participants learned how to write a
competitive resume, how to engage professionally
in a job interview, and how to develop strong
communication skills. Based on the knowledge gained

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 Facilitation Training for Young Professionals
Facilitation: the art of making your meetings and
workshops purposeful and time-efficient. This
definition reflects the value inherent to building the
capacity of young professionals on how to improve
work performance and outcomes, a large component
of Syunik-Development NGO’s Social Development
Program in Vayots Dzor financed by Brot für die
Welt-Protestant Development Service. The program
gives young professionals an opportunity to have
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an internship within Syunik NGO departments and
to acquire project management skills so as to be
competitive in the labor market. In-house trainings
are part of the component and from the 6th to the
9th of February, a four-day workshop was organized
for the professionals on the topic of facilitation. The
facilitation training aimed at providing participants
with knowledge on team building, leading discussions
or meetings, and effective management skills. During
the four-day workshop, participants learned the main
roles of the facilitator, conflict resolution methods,
effective communication skills, and the rules for
creating a working agenda. The training was conducted
by NGO staff members Naira Harutyunyan and Hasmik
Galstyan, who had previously participated in a Training
for Trainers facilitation project conducted by the
Swiss HEKS/EPER Organization. By passing on their
acquired knowledge to local community members,
Naira and Hasmik hope that such Initiatives will be
sustainable and will contribute to the development
of knowledge and skills the local workforce.
Alumni of Syunik NGO’s Training of Trainers (ToT) on Peace
Building and Facilitation Continue Making a Difference
Since 1995 we have been implementing various peace building initiatives with a vision of
providing youth leaders and trainers already active in the field with important skills and knowledge
on peace building, conflict analysis, management, transformation, mediation, and regulation.
The impact of our initiatives is seen in many areas such as peace building, education, health and
agriculture. Our beneficiaries appreciate the support they receive from Syunik NGO and frequently
indicate how Syunik NGO helped them to progress and become sustainable. The story of Ani Papyan (from
Armenia) and the testimonial of Irakli Jgharkava (from Georgia) are great example of Syunik’s impact.

Ani Papyan

Ani Papyan (second from the left)

Ani Papyan was born in Saratov, Russia in 1994 and
when she was three years old, her family moved to
Armenia, giving her a chance to grow up in motherland
and get an education in Armenia. She is a graduate of
Yerevan State University and has a bachelor’s degree
in International Relations (graduation with honors)
and a bachelor’s degree in Cultural Studies. During
simultaneous studies in two departments, she has
been engaged in many youth-led organizations on a
volunteer basis, working on youth projects related to
human rights, peace building, community development
and democracy promotion. Never limiting herself
with formal education and seeking extracurricular
opportunities, she has participated in more than 10
international programs and youth forums in France, the
Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium,
the United States. She also managed to do internships
with the Municipality of Yerevan, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and US Embassy in Armenia.
“Since the very beginning of my student life, I truly
believed that young leaders with high standards of
skills, a sense of self-esteem and responsibility are more
than valuable to be able to contribute to building a
democratic society living in peaceful future − especially
coming from Armenia, a country with a complicated
history and geopolitical neighborhood. Since 2013, I have
been engaged in regional and international projects
related to peace and conflicts. My journey as a young
peace-builder started with a one-year-long project on
critical thinking and conflict transformation organized
by Eurasia Partnership Foundation. This was the first
experience on Armenian-Azerbaijani youth dialogue
program where I got inter-disciplinary approach on
those issues. After participating to this project, I started

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to get interested in peace and security studies and got
accepted to Young Women’s Peace Academy. After this
project, I applied to Master Studies on Human Rights
and Democratization where my focus was on conflict
studies. Taking part in exceptional training for trainers
organized by Syunik Development NGO with financial
support of Brot für die Welt I was awarded a certificate
of trainer on peacebuilding and conflict resolution,
which I put to good use within the following project of
Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation. Before this
experience I had no idea about projects implemented by
Syunik Development NGO in the field of peace building
and conflict resolution. The motivating factor to be
Irakli Jgharkava
Originally from Georgia, Irakli Jgharkava currently
works as an Affiliated Policy Analyst at the Georgian
Institute of Politics, a Tbilisi based NGO, where
he mainly focuses on various policy related issues
including Georgia-EU integration, peace building, and
security and development.
Recently, when speaking about his experience with
Syunik’s ToT on Peace Building and Facilitation, Irakli
stated: “I had an opportunity to be one of the participants
of a Peace Building and Facilitation ToT in July 2016
organized by Syunik-Development NGO in cooperation
with Georgian Youth for Diplomatic Engagement NGO
in the Lucy Tour Hotel of Vayots Dzor Region, Armenia.
As the ToT’s main theme was introducing various types
of instruments in the peace-building and facilitation
process, it truly widened my scope of understanding
of different phases of conflict, the significance of
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more involved in this kind of projects and contribute
to the conflict transformation process and peace-
building activities is my belief that the establishment of
strong mutual trust, confidence and understanding at
the grassroots level ensures an enabling environment
which will advocate for and uphold, any peace
processes which emerge. In developing a culture of
peace at the community level, practitioners worldwide
agree that youth must be the starting point. So I hope,
and I believe that my direct involvement can bring
positive change in the process” noted Ani Papyan,
Syunik Development NGO alumna/ peace facilitator.
spreading fake news (and how to combat its spread) all
while improving my facilitation skills at the same time.
Moreover, after the ToT, I was lucky enough to
spend one year abroad to specialize in European
Studies on a Master’s level at the College of Europe
in Natolin, Poland, where I was actively engaging in
different platforms (conferences, presentations, and
simulation games) dedicated to peace and conflict
resolutions. From these combined experiences, I firmly
believe we need more such ToTs to ease the existing
tense in the challenging environment we live in.”
On behalf of Syunik-Development NGO we wish all
the best to our alumni as they continue making a
difference in their communities and promoting peace
through mutual understanding.
“Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to
handle conflict by peaceful means” (Ronald Reagan).
 Chiva Community Center Hosts Festive
New Year Performance
As a central component of Syunik-Development
NGO’s Social Development Program, the Clever Baby
Development Center of the Chiva Community helps
meet the assessed needs of community members
by preparing children for primary education and
promoting employment of young mothers. Over the
past this year, the Clever Baby Center has conducted
many events for Chiva and its surrounding communities.
On December 24th, a New Year performance was
organized and hosted by the Chiva Community Center
Armenian Diocese of Canada Continues Supporting
People Living in Border Villages
Syunik-Development NGO, in collaboration with the
Armenian Diocese of Canada, has been implementing
many projects in the remote communities of the
Vayots Dzor Region that are located close to the
Nakhchivan border. This year, as was true of last year,
the Armenian Diocese of Canada provided generous
financial support to the border villages of Sers and
Bardzruni prior to their New Year and Christmas
celebrations. In this way, the traditional imagery of
Santa Claus as coming from the North Pole with his
reindeer and stack of presents has been made into a
much more realistic and accessible figure: the children
of Sers and Bardzruni eagerly await the kindness of
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Coordinator Alina Demirtchyan. The performance was
informative and interesting as youth from the Center
performed Armenian traditional songs, poems, and
dances. After the children’s entertaining performance,
the Snow Maiden and Santa Claus distributed presents
to the Community Center youth. In her closing speech
Ms. Demirtchyan thanked Syunik-Development NGO
and the municipality of Areni Consolidated Community
for their continuous support in bringing opportunities
to local children and youth.
their Canadian counterparts that light up their holiday
season.
On December 27th, 2017, these two villages once
again felt the impact of this generosity. It is already
the third year that the Armenian Diocese of Canada
has provided financial support to people living in the
border villages prior to the New Year and Christmas
celebrations, helping to relieve economic burdens
and make New Year and Christmas more colorful and
memorable. The local Diocese of Vayots Dzor Region
together with Syunik-Development NGO organized the
distribution of donated presents for the children.
 Outside Assessment Helps Ensure Quality
Performance for NGO Programs
Region. In this respect, SDP should consider devising
activities targeting citizens thriving just above the
poverty line. In line with its “Welfare to Facilation”
strategic course, and already being a recognized leader
in community development Syunik should consider
introducing more soial impact targeting advocacy
activities in SDP for inclusion of rural communities into
regional and national strategy planning.
Mrs. Dragin also spend time in Syunik-Development
NGO’s Headquarter Office where she met with key
staff members and learned about Syunik’s ongoing
mission, projects, and activities. During her visit to
From January 16th to 21st, 2018, Syunik-Development Syunik’s Community Centers in Chiva, Jermuk, and
NGO hosted an external evaluator, Mrs. Ankica Dragin, Vayk she had the opportunity to talk directly with
to support the assessment of its Social Development local beneficiaries, initiative group members, parents,
Program (SDP) funded by the German organization teachers, and other program stakeholders about the
Brot für die Welt-Protestant Development Service. achievements, challenges, and possible directions for
Mrs. Dragin spent her visit examining how the future work of the NGO in the field. In addition, Mrs.
Program’s current outputs and outcomes matched Dragin met with the vice mayor of Yeghegnadzor Vardan
with the initially set program objectives, noting Avagyan, alumni of Syunik’s cross-border Training of
both areas of excel and areas for improvement. Key Trainers, and Syunik’s Georgian project partner Kristi
recommendations according to the external evaluator Arakelova. A one-day planning workshop was part
are: Welfare/aid intervention preparedness be kept as of the visit as well during which time the ongoing
one of the SDP crisis interevention options due to the and future activities of the program were discussed.
socio-economic and political situation in Vayots Dzor

Fundraising Training Builds Staff Competency

Hasmik Galstyan, Syunik-Development NGO Youth Project Coordinator, participated in a two-day
training on fundraising which took place in Tbilisi, Georgia from December 19th to 20th. The training
was organized by the HEKS/EPER South Caucasus Office and aimed at providing insights into alternative
fundraising strategies. Additional topics discussed by the participants included crowd funding, corporate
partnership schemes, state funding, social entrepreneurship and income generation practices. “Such
trainings give us an opportunity to enhance and develop our skills on fundraising and corporate partnership
schemes which will late on be beneficial for the NGO and community as well”, noted Hasmik Galstyan.

Office of International & Public Affairs Tel/Fax:+374(281) 20409

Syunik Development NGO Email: gevorg.syunikngo@gmail.com
Momiki St.5, 3601 Yeghegnadzor www.syunikngo.am
Vayots Dzor Province, Armenia
Syunik-Development NGO PR Manager: Gevorg Matevosyan
Editor-in-Chief: Nara Martirosyan, Sam Houston State University