The UNDP “Youth Employment” project keeps the deployment of a comprehensive set of Active Labor Market Policy (ALMP) instruments at the regional level. This targeted initiative is one of the project’s continuous efforts in addressing youth unemployment challenges faced by different segments of the population, including first-time job seekers with a focus on VETIs graduates, refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh, and NEET youth.  

To this end, in April 2025, the project kicked off the 5th round of the initiative, providing 100 young beneficiaries from Kotayk and Syunik regions with the opportunity to pass a fully paid 3-month on-the-job training at the premises of the regional employers with further prospects for sustainable jobs. Among the beneficiaries are VETIs’ graduates who, as first-time job seekers, will be equipped with necessary practical skills demanded by today's job markets, refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh and NEET young individuals who will be provided with necessary work experience, skills, and knowledge to start over, regain a sense of stability, and build a better future for themselves, their families, and communities.

The project covers monthly salaries, taxes, social payments for trainees as well as coaching fee for employers providing a comprehensive support package to young people to facilitate the entry-level job opportunities and provide beneficiaries with hands-on experience and exposure to real-world of work environment, ultimately increasing their chances of securing decent employment right after the completion of the on-the-job training or in the upcoming future. 

“Before being displaced in 2023, I used to work as a kindergarten teacher,” says Yelizaveta Mangasaryan, a refugee from Nagorno-Karabakh, who started on-the-job training program at the children educational center in Abovyan city, “This on-the-job training enables me to start over, to revitalize my skills, to integrate into community and get opportunity to secure a job”. 

Susanna Girogryan has been hired by the “Found Dream” kindergarten. “I was unemployed for several years, and this is breakthrough opportunity to acquire a new profession, enhance my skills, look for permanent employment, and open new horizons in my life”, emphasizes Susanna. 

Through this strategic initiative, the project aspires to create a sustainable impact, empowering beneficiaries and contributing to the broader scope of livelihood recovery at the local level. The initiative is implemented in cooperation with the Unified Social Services of the RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs as well as with the “Armenian Progressive Youth” NGO, proving the application of successful tripartite cooperation model established among State-run agency, civil society organization, and UNDP.