Today, Gor Vardanyan, Rector of the National Polytechnic University of Armenia (NPUA), and Nanna Skau, Representative and Country Director of the World Food Programme (WFP) in Armenia, presented Aramazd Ghalamkaryan, Chairman of the Water Committee (WC), with jointly developed digital irrigation maps, a spatial database, and mapping methodological manuals based on Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

The tools were developed under the "Capacity Building of Water Users Associations of Armenia" project, funded by the Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development (EFSD) in cooperation with the Armenian Territorial Development Fund (ATDF).

The initiative aims to improve irrigation planning, monitoring, and management processes, as well as to strengthen the capacities of Water Users Associations (WUAs).

As part of the pilot project, digital mapping of irrigation infrastructure was conducted in the consolidated communities of Akhuryan, Artik, and Ani in Shirak Province.

The collected data and developed methodology can be adapted and applied across Armenia, creating a foundation for scaling up digital management tools in the irrigation sector.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the Water Committee emphasized the importance of deepening cooperation between the academic and public sectors to leverage scientific and professional potential in solving practical sector management challenges.

Ghalamkaryan highlighted that the establishment of the Soil and Water Committee will provide an opportunity to expand collaboration by combining knowledge, technologies, and public administration toolkits. In this context, digital mapping and the application of spatial data can become a key component not only of individual projects but also of a unified, data-driven soil and water management system.