Donor UNICEF
Period: June 2025-December 2025
Transforming Lives: Strengthening Armenia’s Care Standards for a More Inclusive Future
Armenia is embarking on a historic transformation of its social protection system. Through the “Enhancing Care Standards” project, ESI Consulting Group is working to ensure that the most vulnerable members of society—children in adversity, the elderly, and persons with disabilities—receive care that meets the highest international benchmarks.
Reimagining Care: From Principles to Practice
At the heart of this reform is the revision of mandatory state criteria based on global best practices. Over the past six months, the project team conducted an exhaustive review of care models from countries including Latvia, Moldova, Romania, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
This research has culminated in a series of draft Minister’s Orders designed to modernize care in residential institutions, community-based group homes, and daycare settings. Key improvements include:
- Nutrition & Wellbeing: Transitioning to individualized caloric intake plans that prioritize fruits, vegetables, and cereals over traditional staples like bread and potatoes.
- Staffing for Success: Proposing significant increases in staff-to-beneficiary ratios and introducing new specialist roles to focus on rehabilitation and social integration.
- Dignified Living: Updating standards for clothing, personal hygiene supplies, and facility infrastructure to ensure individualized care.
Elevating Standards for Children
The project has also finalized comprehensive care standards for children left without parental care and those in adversity. These standards specify everything from seasonal clothing replacement cycles to the availability of sensory rooms and vocational training facilities. To ensure these standards are realistic and sustainable, the team conducted a detailed costing analysis, identifying a required investment of approximately AMD 2.05 billion to fully implement these quality improvements.
Furthermore, public hearings and roundtable discussions have engaged over 120 stakeholders, including service providers and civil society representatives, ensuring the new standards are grounded in local reality.
Public Consultation and Legal Frameworks
At the outset of the project, we supported MLSA in organizing a public consultation on the draft legal act for certifying social services. The event gathered 44 participants—84% of them women—from civil society and service providers. Their feedback informed the finalization of the act, which has now been published on the e-draft platform for wider review.
A First for Armenia: The Center for Independent Living
A major milestone of the project is the development of the first-ever concept for a Center for Independent Living (CIL). Designed as a draft Minister’s Order, the CIL concept includes:
- A glossary of terms aligned with international rights-based frameworks.
- Detailed business flows and organizational structures.
- Inclusive room designs for psychologists, speech therapists, and physiotherapists, developed in collaboration with Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs).
Collaborative Governance and Evidence-Based Policy
Transparency and participation have been the pillars of this journey. The team coordinated inputs from 14 government agencies and 7 MLSA departments for Armenia’s response to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The consolidated report has been submitted to the Ministry of Justice for onward transmission.
Looking Ahead
While the project has made substantial progress, the journey continues. The finalized draft standards and financial estimations have been submitted to the Ministry of Finance, with a phased implementation plan set to begin in January 2028.
By bridging the gap between legislative frameworks and operational excellence, Armenia is building a social protection system where every citizen can live with dignity and participate fully in society.
