Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today traveled to Gegharkunik Marz of Armenia. Accompanied by Minister of Territorial Administration and infrastructure Suren Papikyan, Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Vahram Dumanyan, Gegharkunik Marz Governor Gnel Sanosyan, the Premier first visited Secondary School N2 in Gavar to get acquainted with the ongoing reconstruction activities.
The school was built in 1967. A study carried out in 2016 revealed that the building was in emergency state and it was no longer safe to hold classes in there. The inside walls were cracked, and there were even cases of rock fall from the building. A decision was made to rebuild the school; construction activities were complete by the end of 2020. 580 tons of iron reinforcement was used to rebuild the school in accordance with the latest seismic standards. The new school building can withstand an earthquake of up to magnitude 9.
The school was renovated under the School Seismic Safety Improvement Program, implemented through the Territorial Development Fund of Armenia. The Government of Armenia and the Asian Development Bank invested AMD 1,380 million in the reconstruction project.
The school did not lose any students as it did not operate at its main address during construction. Renamed after Papin Ghandilyan, the school is attended by 422 students at this point of time, but this figure may increase following reconstruction. It is designed for 576 students. The new school building is adapted to host children with disabilities; it has an elevator, well-furnished classrooms, a conference hall, a gym and laboratories.
