7 May 2013

A monitoring visit was conducted in the 7 ha forest which was established in Chambarak in 2012. The project was realised at the initiative of the "Council of Deceased Soldiers' Mothers and Wives" local NGO and Shen NGO and funded by the UNDP GEF Small Grants Programme. The delegation comprised of the representatives of the donor organisation expressed its satisfaction with the successful implementation and sustainability of the project. Today we can state with confidence that in a few years there will be a wonderful forest of 7 hectares in Chambarak.

                

A Major Rural Development Agency in Armenia



Vision
To become a reliable partner for vulnerable rural communities in their endeavour to create better life.

Mission Statement
Shen promotes social and economic development and empowerment of remote and vulnerable communities with active involvement of community members. Through transferring new knowledge and skills, promotion of employment, improvement of community infrastructures, strengthening of community organizations, we strive to make those communities attractive for life and work.

Shen's mission is very appealing to Diaspora Armenians who aim to support their compatriots in Armenia to become well off and empowered to create their prosperity with their own hands. If you share this idea, join us - following in the footsteps of Yalkezian Foundation (www.yalkezian.com).

About us
The word "shen" means a well-to-do, a prosperous village in Armenian. It is our goal that all the villages of Armenia will become "shens" in the foreseen future.

Shen NGO was created in 1988, by a group of professors and students of Yerevan Polytechnic Institute to address some of the urgent humanitarian problems that faced people of Armenia. As time changed we made a shift from outreach projects to integrated community development. Yet considering the role of market forces in rural development we put special emphasis on facilitative activities dealing with market players alongside value chain aiming at sustainable outcomes for our projects.

The cornerstone of all Shen development projects is long-term sustainability. This is our vision since 1988 for all the implemented activities in over 350 rural communities of Armenia. This has been accomplished with significant support of our sister NGO Shen France and the Armenian Diaspora. We would also like to acknowledge hereby our partner donors - World Council of Churches, Christian Aid (UK), IFAD, EED (Germany), ICCO (the Netherlands), Oxfam Novib (the Netherlands), EPER (Switzerland), KASA Foundation (Switzerland), UNDP, UNFPA, USDA, FAO, DFID, USAID, SDC.

In 2010-2012, in collaboration with Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation and financial support of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Shen implemented a Making Markets Work for the Poor (M4P) project in Meghri, the southernmost region of Armenia. Unlike other conventional development approaches, which merely identify the poor people and try to respond to their needs, the M4P approach seeks to explore the underlying constraints in the environment of poor people (market system) as well as the complex range of structures and institutional arrangements that make markets work. Within the M4P approach, facilitation is a central element to achieving sustainability. Based on achieved results of Markets for Meghri project Shen decided to continue implement this innovative approach in other regions of Armenia as well.