Prime Minister: Repatriation trends  becoming more robust today amid   peace agenda and  established peace

ArmInfo. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received participants of the iGorts program, which brings diaspora professionals into Armenia’s public administration system.

According to the government press service, welcoming the  participants, Pashinyan said Armenia has recently been witnessing  certain repatriation and immigration trends. He noted that in 2025,  the number of Armenian citizens returning to the country exceeded the  number leaving by more than 8,000.  According to the Prime Minister,  people are returning to Armenia, purchasing property, making  investments and seeking to build their lives in the country.

"Unlike 2014, and even 2019-2020, repatriation trends today are  becoming more robust, thanks in part to the peace agenda and the  established peace, as this is also a factor we must definitely take  into account," said Nikol Pashinyan. The Prime Minister noted that  the iGorts program is part of this process and expressed hope that it  would become a more practical and reliable mechanism for return.

Referring to his initiative to recruit graduates of the world’s top  200 universities into Armenia’s public administration system,  Pashinyan said concrete appointments had already been made, with more  expected in the near future. He noted that some of those appointed  had first become familiar with the possibility of working in  Armenia’s public administration through the iGorts program.   Pashinyan also spoke about the concept of “Real Armenia,” saying the  government is increasingly focused on shaping Armenia’s present and  future around this ideology.

“If we formulate this ideology in one sentence, it is about the  meaning and significance of the Republic of Armenia as a state:  ensuring the security and well-being, freedom, preservation of  identity and development of its citizens within the internationally  recognized territory of the Republic of Armenia,” Pashinyan said.   According to the Prime Minister, Armenia’s ideologies had  traditionally been formulated by elites and imposed on society and  the people. He said the “Real Armenia” ideology emerged as part of a  transitional phase and was implemented rapidly.

“I am now convinced that the process of immigration will be  institutionalized, because today Armenia is governed according to a  logic and ideology that was not imposed on the people by elites, but  imposed on the governing force by the people. Therefore, I believe  this is a new situation in our history, opening limitless horizons  for our state,” Pashinyan said.  He stressed the importance of moving  forward by making use of these opportunities.  Pashinyan also said  the ongoing repatriation trends were not accidental and expressed  hope that Armenia could further develop them by reformatting  relations between Armenia and the Diaspora.

In this context, Nikol Pashinyan added that these valuable  repatriation processes are not accidental. "I hope that we can,  including by reformatting relations between Armenia and the Diaspora,  develop this logic and truly make Armenia a developing state with a  growing population, primarily through repatriation and, of course,  the implementation of a demographic strategy. The human potential  that will be involved in the implementation of this plan and strategy  plays a very important role here. 

The iGorts program is a system for realizing realize this potential,  to meet with these people, which, I hope, will become increasingly  effective over time," said the head of government.  Acting High  Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs Zareh Sinanyan thanked the Prime  Minister for hosting the participants of the 6th program and provided  detailed information about the program. It was noted that 68- 70% of  the participants have remained in Armenia over the past five years,  while 15% continue to work in the public sector. The program has 45  participants, coming from Sweden, Spain, the Russian Federation,  Norway, Hungary, France, Jordan, Belarus, Brazil, Argentina, Iran,  and Austria.