Healthy life-style programme to be implemented in Armenia 

ArmInfo. A pilot program for a healthy lifestyle and physical activity among children will be 

implemented in Armenia. At a meeting on July 4, the RA Government approved the document presented by the RA Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports.

According to the head of the Ministry of Education and Science, 

Zhanna Andreasyan, the program provides for increasing opportunities 

for children to engage in physical education and sports, especially 

swimming.  In this regard, there was a need to expand the networks of 

swimming pools in the regions of the country.  The minister 

emphasized that paid swimming pools already operate in a number of 

regions of Armenia, the presence of which creates good opportunities 

for public-private partnerships.

The presented document provides for funding the training of 

school-age children. To participate in the program, tenders will be 

announced, in which those swimming pools that comply with sanitary 

and hygienic standards and water quality approved by the RA Ministry 

of Health will be able to participate.  According to the Ministry of 

Education and Science, 9 swimming pools will be able to take part in 

the tender, including in Kapan, Etchmiadzin, Vanadzor, Metsamor, 

Hrazdan, Ijevan and Aparan.

For swimming lessons, 200 children will be divided into two groups - 

from 8 to 12 years old, and from 13 to 17 years old. In the first 

group, the number of simultaneously training should not be more than 

12 children, in the second - 10. Training should take place three 

times a week for 1 hour. Admission of children will be based on 

applications and on a first-come, first-served basis. If during the 

year a student fails to pass the third-grade standard, another from 

the list of waiting children will be invited to take his place. 

Andreasyan said that currently, together with the urban planning 

committee, research is being conducted to select standard pools, on 

the basis of which the issue of constructing similar facilities in 

other regions of the country will be decided.

In this regard, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol 

Pashinyan emphasized that the government decided to finance this 

program so that children would seriously engage in sports, and not 

just go to the pool. "These, as you yourself understand, are 

different things, but no one forbids children and their parents to go 

to the pool," said the head of government.