ARTASHES ARAKELYAN

PhD, Director,

aara@arminco.com

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON “LAND REFORM POLICIES IN TRANSITION ECONOMIES”

October 28-29, 2005Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

YEREVAN, ARMENIA

URBAN LAND REFORMS IN ARMENIA

Case of Yerevan

Outcomes of Land Reform

• the very small size of these family farms which on average, was not more than 1.3-1.4 hectares (and less than 0.5 ha per rural capita)

• primarily arable land (with in addition most of the orchards and vineyards) was privatized

• an important part of the hayfields and all pasture land remained in the hands of the state.

NUMBER AND ACREAGE OF PEASANT FARMS (1998-2003)

1992 1993 1996 1998 2000 2002 2003

Nr of Peasant Farms Units (x 1,000) 165.2 238.3 316.4 333.8 332.6

334.7 337.9

Land Area of Peasant Farms (x 1,000 Ha) 214.9 310.4 429.2 447.0 460.1

453.1 461.3

Average Size Peasant Farms (Ha) 1.30 1.30 1.36 1.34 1.38 1.35 1.37

Agric.land

Arable Land

Perennial Grass

Fallow Land Hay Land

Pasture

Land Balance (1997) (x 1,000 Ha) 1,391.4 494.3 63.8 0.4 138.9 694.0

Cadastral Zones

Zones Coefficient Price per sq/m

1 1.0000 60000.00

2 0.6500 39000.00

3 0.4225 25350.00

4 0.2746 16476.00

5 0.1785 10710.00

6 0.1160 6960.00

7 0.0754 4524.00

8 0.0490 2940.00

9 0.0319 1914.00

Basic price for per sq/m is 60,000 AMD=120USD

Old definition of zones

Zones Price per sq/m /USD/

1 5.7

2 4.4

3 3.3

4 2

5 0.76

Access to Land in Armenia

Land in Armenia can be acquired through following means:

• Direct sale or lease of private land or the transfer of land or property rights through inheritance or donation

• Land Auction by the state or local government

• Privatization of state-owned property

Access to Land in Yerevan

The auction process begins with the investor undertaking the following steps:

• The preparation of an application to the Mayor to ask for a land parcel • The request, if deemed appropriate, is sent to the Chief Architect’s Office for

review • If a parcel of land is determined appropriate for the land use requested then by

the Land auction commission on holding a land auction.

Particularly

• by the Chief Architect’s Office is prepared a site map detailing the land parcel with restrictions

• Then the application file is forwarded onto the Land auction commission of the Municipality who is the governing body responsible for carrying out land auctions.

• The Land Auction commission of the Municipality then places an ad in the newspaper announcing the sale of the property. This is done one month in advance of the land auction.

Auction sale and leasing

Auction/Competition

Nr of Lots

Land area InitialAuction/

competitive price

Auction price/Compit.

Price/ anuel fee

587/27281,106/

126,140.5 1,122,960,000 / 24,251,100.0

1,205,167,985/ 25,897,560.0 / 1,763,150.0

Direct Sale of State-Owned Land

• Submit an application to the Mayor’s Office requesting the direct sale of land

• The request is forwarded onto the Land Auction Commission

Direct Sale

TOTAL

Nr of Mayor Decisions

Nr of contracts

Land area Total price

Total 679 714 2,436,367 2,780,803,764 

Leasing of State–Owned Lands

• Submit an application to the Mayor’s Office requesting a lease for a specific parcel of land

• The request is forwarded onto the Land Competitive Commission who reviews the letter

• If the request is approved, the investor must enter into a legal contract with the Land Competitive Commission

land management and administration

• Efficient: promotes growth based on free market principles • Sustainability: balanced, quality-oriented, and managed for the

long term benefit of society • Equitable: provides equal access to opportunity and

information

Procedures need to be:

• Transparent and accountable: founded on clear rights and responsibilities under the application of legal rules and principles

• Participatory: formulated through a consultative, participatory process which permits input from the persons or government bodies most directly affected

International best practice to implement sustainable land policies and to effectively utilize property and promote investment in the country

• Laws and institutions/government organizations that protect property and tenure rights

• Land use and development planning, processes and procedural enforcement systems

• Land and natural resource protection and management programs

• Property valuation and taxation offices

The strategic goals

• develop a competitive environment in the real property market,

• encourage a system of private land sales, and

• create the necessary conditions for the best and maximum efficient usage of real property.

The expected results

• Transparent and simplified registration rights to real property • The establishment of a comprehensive database of real property

and identifying information • Introduction of market mechanisms for real property valuation • Regulations for the consolidation and planning of lands • Steam-lined processes for acquiring permissions regarding new

development projects • Creation of favorable conditions for private sector land transactions • Establishment of a real estate market and real estate professionals • Introduction of mechanisms to decentralize all land and real

property in Armenia • Clear definitions of state functions for land management and as a

regulative body for the real property market • Undertaking real property monitoring