Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is lending €236 million to Armenia for the construction of the southern stretch of the Sisian-Kajaran road.

This funding marks the most substantial road infrastructure endeavour the EBRD has ever supported in Armenia. Initial stages of the project, including a feasibility study and assessments of environmental and social impacts, benefited from European Union (EU) technical cooperation funds.

The loan agreement was finalised today by Armenia’s Minister of Finance, Vahe Hovhannisyan, and the EBRD’s Managing Director of the Sustainable Infrastructure Group, Nandita Parshad, at the EBRD Annual Meeting and Business Forum in Yerevan. The ceremony, held prior to the Armenia Investment Outlook session, was witnessed by over 200 dignitaries.

The investment will enable the Armenian government to construct a new 24-kilometre road segment between Sisian and Kajaran, enhancing the North-South Road Corridor. This project aims to improve both local and broader regional connectivity, facilitating access to international markets via the Black Sea.

It aligns with EU flagship initiatives focused on boosting land transport links and resilience in Armenia’s southern regions, supporting the EU Global Gateway strategy. Moreover, the project will reduce the travel distance and time between the Syunik region and Yerevan by half, offering a quicker and safer route.

For Armenia, a country without direct sea access, robust road infrastructure is essential for sustaining trade flow, diversifying the economy, and fostering growth in the private sector.

EBRD Managing Director, Sustainable Infrastructure Group, Nandita Parshad said, “We appreciate Armenia’s aspiration to develop a transport and logistics infrastructure that will enhance its regional connectivity and integration with external markets. We support this project because it meets our strategic objectives in Armenia and the region. We are also grateful to our partner, the European Union, which provided technical cooperation support to ease the implementation of this important initiative.”

Over the past five years, the EBRD has invested €640 million in Armenia, focusing on private sector development, infrastructure improvements, renewable energy, and rural digitalisation.

The bank has deployed more than €2.1 billion across 211 projects in the country to date.