The Armenian government has approved a zero-interest loan program for farming households, set to run in 2026–2027.
Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan said at the April 9 cabinet meeting that until now there had been no unified program covering all sub-sectors of the agri-food industry. The new initiative includes nearly all areas of agriculture—from rabbit breeding and poultry farming to pedigree livestock, as well as traditional and high-tech crop production, according to 1lurer.am .
He noted that one of the key goals is to support small farms, especially those that have already invested in technological agriculture and need access to affordable financing.
The minister emphasized that each beneficiary will have a loan limit of 1–2 million drams.
“Under the program, each beneficiary will receive a loan ranging from a minimum of 1 million to a maximum of 2 million drams. The entire interest rate will be subsidized by the government, but the condition is that the rate must not exceed 14 percent. That means the government’s cost cannot exceed 14 percentage points.
The full interest amount will be subsidized by the government, allowing our farmers to access loans at 0 percent. The repayment period is up to three years. Another important point is that there is a six-month grace period from the moment the loan is issued for the principal amount. That is, if citizens take 2 million drams, they pay nothing for the first six months—the interest is covered by the state—and they begin repaying the principal from the sixth month.
What is even more important is that beneficiaries can use this program multiple times. For example, they can first take 1 or 1.5 million drams, and later apply again to receive the remaining amount,” Papoyan said.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan noted that the initiative is widely known among farmers as the zero-interest loan program and that this decision formally enables that opportunity. He clarified that the six-month grace period allows farmers to generate income first and only then begin repayment within a period of up to three years.
“Dear farmers, with this decision we are approving the zero-interest loan program,” he said.
