Armenia

  • With a population of around 3 million (2020), Armenia contributes as little as 0.02% to the total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and is in the lower range of per capita footprint with 3.45 t CO2e.

    Armenia’s GHG emissions fell by about 70% between 1990 and 1995 and then fluctuated between 7 and 8,5 Mio t CO2eq until 2010. In the latest available year (2017) [1] GHG emissions are at the level of 10,6 Mio t, which is an increase of 25% from 2010. This increase was mainly driven by increased economic activity (+34%) and counterbalanced by a decrease in population (-2.4%). Comparisons of the latest year show that emission intensity per GDP is the lowest compared with the other Eastern Partnership countries.

    In the updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) 2021-2030, Armenia sets the economy wide GHG emission reduction single year target of 40% by 2030 compared with the base year 1990.

     

     

    [1] https://unfccc.int/documents/274257

  • Energy and agriculture are the two sectors with the largest GHG emission shares, 66.7% and 18.5% respectively, and therefore this is where most of the mitigation potential lies [2].

     

    [2] Armenia’s Third Biennial Update Report

  • Climate change is already affecting Armenia, with an annual temperature increase higher than the global average and a significant decrease in precipitation.

  • Armenia’s 4th National Communication on Climate Change (NC4) (2020) reports that it experienced an average temperature rise of 1.23°C between 1929–2016 while a 10% reduction in average annual precipitation volume was documented over the period 1935–2012. The Biennial Update Report 3 (BUR3) (2021) reports that from 1990 to 2019, the deviation of the average annual temperature from the baseline period (1961-1991) was averaging 0.9°C. In 2019, a deviation of 1.5°C from the annual average temperature for the period of 1961-1990 was recorded.

    Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projections suggest Armenia could experience warming at levels significantly above the global average, with potential warming of 4.7°C by 2090s, above the 1986–2005 baseline, under the highest emissions pathway (RCP8.5). Increased drought risks, floods and landslide hazards, a reduction of the total arable land and the yield of staple crops will be driving significant changes in the ecosystem composition, dryland expansion, water availability and food production.

     

  • Climate change is increasing the vulnerability of Armenia, with an increase in the frequency of extreme weather events, worsening desertification and land degradation.

    The most vulnerable sectors are agriculture, human health, water resources, forestry, transport and energy infrastructure.

     

  • The Strategic Programme of Prospective Development 2014-2025 – the overarching development strategy of the country – mentions climate change as an issue that needs to be addressed in order to improve rates of economic growth. A strong focus is given to mitigation and emissions reduction. The country has a set of climate-relevant environmental laws with further amendments (e.g. Water Code, 2002, and Law on Energy Saving and Renewable Energy, 2004) and policies (e.g. National Forest Policy, 2004, and the Strategy of the Main Directions Ensuring Economic Development in Agricultural Sector 2020-2030, 2019, the Strategic Programme for the Development of the Energy Sector of the Republic of Armenia (until 2040)). However, these existing laws and policies do not have a specific focus on climate change. To address this, the government decided to develop national action plans for all climate-sensitive sectors.

    The National Strategy on Disaster Risk Management (2017) integrates climate change and incorporates Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Program on Energy Saving and Renewable Energy for 2022-2030 and its Action Plan for 2022-2024 were approved by the Government of Armenia in March 2022. The National Action Programme of Adaptation to Climate Change and the list of Measures for 2021-2025 were approved by the Government in May 2021. The water Sector Adaptation Plan and its Program of Measures for 2022-2026 were adopted in November 2022.

    The designated authority for climate change in Armenia is the Ministry of Environment and the Inter-Agency Coordination Council for the Implementation of the Requirements and Provisions of the UNFCCC established in 2012 and revised in 2021.

Climate policy development and advancing cooperation with the EU in Armenia

The EU relations with Armenia are based on the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which entered into full force in March 2021. At the regional level, the Eastern Partnership policy guides the EU’s multilateral engagement with the eastern neighbourood countries, including Armenia. Among other sectors, green connectivity, energy, environment and climate are key priorities for the EU in Armenia. Environment and adaptation to climate change are supported through various actions such as: improving water resources management and transboundary cooperation; mainstreaming environmental goals; developing sounder environmental governance; enhancing environmental awareness; and improving the sustainable   management of key natural resources. Support to sustainable energy, energy efficiency and climate resilience has also been strongly provided by the EU, including together with International Financial Institutions.

      • 2014
        • Strategic Program of Prospective
          Development 2014-2025
      • 2015
        • INDC 2015-2050
        • COP21 Paris Agreement
        • Pledge to Sustainable Development
          Agenda 2030
      • 2016
        • Stakeholder consultation for National
          Adaptation Plan (NAP)
        • 1st Biennial Update Report submitted to
          the UNFCCC
      • 2017
        • Ratification of Paris Agreement National Strategy on Disaster Risk
          Management
        • Energy Community Secretariat assistance
      • 2018
        • Comprehensive and Enhanced
          Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with EU CEPA Roadmap
        • 2nd Biennial Update Report to the UNFCCC
        • NDC Partnership
      • 2019
        • EU4Climate launched
      • 2020
        • 4th National Communication
          to the UNFCCC
      • 2021
        • Updated NDC 2021-2030
        • 3rd Biennial Update Report to the UNFCCC
        • National Adaptation Plan and List of Measures for 2021-2025
        • Upgraded status of the Inter-agency Coordinating Council for Implementation of Requirements and Provision of the UNFCCC established in 2012
      • 2022
        • National Programme on Energy Saving and Renewable Energy for 2022 to 2030
        • Draft NDC Implementation Plan, Financing Strategy & Investment Plan
        • Draft LT-LEDS of Armenia
        • Draft Concept for Climate Law of Armenia
      • 2023
        • Finalised LT-LEDS of Armenia
        • Draft Climate Law of Armenia

EU4Climate key policy interventions and expected impact

  • Armenia is a country with an ambitious climate change agenda, which makes significant efforts towards low carbon development through increasing the share of renewable energy, promoting energy efficiency, preserving and enhancing forest-covered areas and reporting regularly to the UNFCCC.

    However, the main constraints for Armenia include dependence on external financing, availability of national funds to finance the process of Monitoring Reporting and Verifications system of emissions, limited human resources, technological and capacity building, shortage of arrangements for data collection for the GHG inventory or nation-wide forest inventory, poor local climate adaptation plans.

EU4Climate in Armenia

  • The EU4Climate Programme, funded by the European Union, aims to support the development and implementation of climate-related policies by the Eastern Partnership countries.

    EU4Climate supported Armenia’s commitment to update and enhance the country’s NDC, with the ultimate goal to identify a realistic implementation strategy for the limitation of GHG emissions and prioritization of adaptation measures for coping with risks to the country’s sustainable development. The main tool for the successful implementation of the Armenian NDC, as well as the Climate Action SDG, is a long-term Low Emission Development Strategy (LEDS), including the development of energy and agriculture sectoral strategies.

    A robust domestic emissions measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) system will be established, to inform the government and the international community of the progress of its NDC implementation. Throughout the programme, the best international and EU practices will be applied, including alignment with EU Acquis in accordance with the CEPA.’

Result areas and timeframe in Armenia

RESULT AREAS

2019

2020

2021

2022

 

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

NDC

Long-term LEDS

MRV System

EU Climate Acquis

Climate mainstreaming

Climate investment

Adaptation planning

Result areas and timeframe in Armenia

  • Implementation of EU4Climate activities started in Armenia in the second half of 2019. laying the foundation for assisting the country in the implementation of Armenia’s commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Full country profile can be downloaded here.