Today, a regular meeting of the Permanent Technical Commission for the Use and Protection of Water Systems took place at the Water Committee, attended by N. Vardanyan, Deputy Chairman of the Water Committee, and M. Nalbandyan, Manager of the Water and Irrigation Services Improvement Project (WISE) in Armenia. Colonel M. Babajanyan from the Rescue Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Armenia was also invited to the session.

The agenda of the meeting included critical issues aimed at ensuring the safety of hydro-technical structures, assessing the technical condition of reservoirs, improving water legislation, and managing water resources efficiently.

The progress of implementing the requirements for the development and expertise of safety declarations for hydro-technical structures, defined by RA Government Decision No. 957-N of September 4, 2003, was discussed. Emphasis was placed on the need to review and tighten the requirements for safety declarations in order to ensure the safe operation of these structures.

Proposals for amendments and additions to the Water Code of the Republic of Armenia were also addressed. It was noted that a number of existing gaps in current legislation hinder effective sector management in practice, underscoring the necessity for legislative reforms.

Special attention was given to the need for assessing actual reservoir capacities and conducting relevant studies.

Proposals aimed at the efficient use of water resources were presented. Opportunities to increase the efficiency of irrigation technologies in agriculture and promote water conservation were discussed. Current operational matters were also addressed.

At the conclusion of the session, priority focus areas to be discussed during the next meeting were outlined.