On December 15, 2025, the CARD Foundation and the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) signed a new cooperation agreement, which creating further opportunities to ensure the continuity and sustainability of the livestock identification and registration system in the Republic of Armenia.
The agreement was signed by CARD Foundation Director Mrs. Sona Telunts and Mr. Kuenzi Erwin, Head of the Armenian Office of the Austrian Development Agency.
The new agreement is a logical continuation of the previous cooperation and reaffirms the long-standing and effective partnership between the CARD Foundation and the Austrian Development Agency. It builds on the results already achieved and aims to continue and expand the reforms of the livestock identification and registration, veterinary and slaughterhouse systems in Armenia, ensuring their sustainable development and long-term impact.
The cooperation is also of great importance for the CARD Foundation, expanding the scope of the organization's activities and providing an opportunity to attract new knowledge, leading international experience, modern technologies, and the best solutions in the field to Armenia.
The program will be implemented in three main directions:
- Establishment of the Small Ruminant Identification and Registration System
It is planned to support the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Armenia in the process of the establishment of small ruminant identification and registration system. During the implementation of the project, existing problems and potential obstacles will be regularly identified, and in cooperation with the Animal Identification and Registration Working Group and international experts, effective solutions to overcome them will be developed and proposed, ensuring the smooth implementation and further development of the system.
- Improvement of the existing cattle AIR system
It is planned in close collaboration with Ministry of Economy to carry out work aimed at continuously improving the existing cattle AIR system by identifying and assessing existing problems, as well as developing and implementing measures to solve them. As a result, data registration and management processes, animal movement control, information accuracy and completeness, as well as the overall operational efficiency of the system will be improved.
- Enhancement of slaughterhouse and veterinary systems as an important prerequisite for the effective implementation of the AIR system
The project envisages in close collaboration with Ministry of Economy to implement measures aimed at improving and reforming the slaughterhouse and veterinary systems as an important prerequisite for the effective implementation of the AIR system. The implemented reforms will contribute to the stable, efficient and long-term operation of the AIR system.
Thanks to the joint efforts of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Armenia, the CARD Foundation and the Austrian Development Agency, more effective management mechanisms for the identification and registration of livestock will be formed, the transparency and controllability of the sector will increase, and farmers and other stakeholders in the sector will receive more modern tools and services. The implementation of the project will also contribute to increasing the competitiveness of Armenian agriculture, improving the animal traceability system and introducing international best practices.
