Armenia

Armenia Country Gender Assessment31. Civil society, especially women’s NGOs, plays an important role in the protectionof women’s rights and in promoting gender equality. Such organizations are locatedthroughout Armenia, and some are represented in the GTG.C. Data Collection: Statistics and Indicators32. Sex-disaggregated data can serve as the foundation for gender analysis andassessments by providing an overview of the current situation and identifying differencesin the relative status of women and men. Furthermore, gender statistics reveal information“vital to the development of policies and programs promoting gender equality and women’sempowerment…and can contribute significantly to the achievement of sustainable andinclusive economic growth and development overall.” 2333. The gender equality concept paper highlights the need at the national andregional level to “regularly collect, analyze and disseminate statistical data regarding theparticipation of women and men in public and social life,” 24 and the Gender Policy StrategicAction Plan reiterates the goal of improving the collection of and reliance on statistical dataand assessments of gender disparities.34. Armenia has made progress in the collection of and use of gender statistics,but the country also requires further capacity development in this area. 25 The NationalStatistical Service of the Republic of Armenia has a designated gender focal point andfour divisions that are responsible for assisting gender mainstreaming in official statistics.The office annually publishes a compilation of sex-disaggregated statistics, Womenand Men in Armenia, with the aim of “providing [an] impartial basis for comparing andevaluating progress toward the set goal of gender equality and women’s empowerment.” 26Institutional weaknesses, however, include the fact that there is no strategy or actionplan for improving gender statistics, there is no budget for the compilation of genderstatistics (Women and Men in Armenia is published with donor support), and there is nostaff member fully dedicated to mainstreaming gender. 27 Further, the Women and Men inArmenia compilation primarily focuses on social sector topics such as health, education,employment, and social protection.35. The National Statistical Service and various ministries also collaborate withinternational partners and NGOs to conduct surveys and collect data on topics that have aparticular gender dimension, for example, the Demographic and Health Survey and studieson domestic violence, family planning and infertility, and informal sector employment.Still, gaps remain in statistical and even gender-sensitive data. For instance, statistical dataconcerning women’s entrepreneurship or gender-sensitive information relevant to theimpact of infrastructure development projects are not routinely gathered, or, if they exist,are not publicly accessible. The lack of these sex-disaggregated data and gender-relevant23 ADB. 2012. Gender Statistics in the Southern Caucasus and Central and West Asia. Manila: ADB. p. 3.24 Gender Policy Concept Paper of the Republic of Armenia, p. 9.25 Gender Statistics in the Southern Caucasus and Central and West Asia, p. 24.26 National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia. 2013. Women and Men in Armenia 2013. Yerevan. p. 9.27 Gender Statistics in the Southern Caucasus and Central and West Asia, p. 52.10