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More than 2,000 children were born in Karabakh in 2006.

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Mazulyan leads a family of 13.

To encourage increasing the population, currently at about 137,700, the government now offers 500,000 drams ($1,650) to any family upon the birth of its third child. A bank account will be also opened with a deposit of the same amount [500,000]. A lump-sum payment of 700,000 AMD ($2,310) and an equal deposit will be offered upon the birth of the fourth child.

Around the time conflict with Azerbaijan began, Karabakh had a population of 189,000 (71 percent of which were Armenians).

The demographics of the country are a matter of concern to both the authorities and the population. The country’s new administration has allocated significant funds in its 2008 budget for raising both natural and mechanical increment. Sixty three percent of the budget (49 billion drams-$162 million) is allocated to the social sector and mostly will be spent on the demography promotion programs.

A number of programs aimed at stimulating natural increment have been launched to assist young families [newlyweds]. According to NKR Minister of Social Affairs Narine Azatyan, 450 million drams ($1,5 miln) of the 2008 state budget is allocated to the assistance to young families. This means that in 2008 1,500 young families will receive 300,000 AMD ($1,000) each.

In 2006 827 marriages were registered, against 751 in 2005.

“We wanted to get married last summer, but we were told that in 2008 the state will give 300,000 ($1,000) AMD to newlyweds,” a resident of Stepanakert Davit Petrosyan told ArmeniaNow. “We decided to wait some more. We won’t have a wedding party, the money is just enough for a trip to Cyprus.”

According to the budget project, child benefits and those for new mothers will also be increased. If before, only working mothers were given parental benefits, starting 2008 all new mothers will receive benefits of 115,000 drams ($380).

For multi-children families other benefits as well are envisaged including compensation for electricity bills (1,200 drams, $4 per each child). For the families with 6 or more children the state builds houses.

Marat Mazulyan, a resident of Vaghazin village in Kashatagh region of Karabakh, has 11 children. On the New Year’s Eve Minister Azatyan visited Marat. She brought presents. As Marat says, the presents came very opportunely- the family had a really festive New Year.

Mazulyan came to Vaghazin from Arakhish village of the same region, because there wasn’t a school there. For now he is mostly concerned about the house he bought 3 years ago for $700.

“It’s in a very bad condition: no floors, no ceiling,” he says. “I have turned to the regional administration body; they gave me some money for the repair. The rest would have to be done on my own. My only hope is my beehive. I’ll be enhancing slowly, maybe in a couple of years I’ll be able to buy a car. It’s impossible to do without a car here,” says Marat and adds that he is not going to leave this village.

Multi-children families get assistance from NGOs as well. For example, Menk (We) NGO implements settlement projects at Kashatagh. The new project is called Apaga (the Future), and within its framework in 30 villages in the north of the region 200,000 drams ($660) is given to families when their first child is born, and 250,000 ($830) for the second child. The President of Menk Tigran Kyuregyan says 900,000 ($3,000) has already been given to families.

The state is planning to ensure population increase through a settlement program. The program is carried out all throughout Karabakh.

Serzh Amirkhanyan, Head of NKR Department on Migration, Refugees and Immigrants, says that in 2007 within the framework of the settlement program 67 houses were built in Karabakh and 23 restored. Eight hundred million drams ($2,667,000) was allocated to immigrants for house purchasing. Two houses were bought in Askeran and Shahumyan regions for the teachers having moved to Karabakh.

“Founding the department on migration in 2003 our goal was to strengthen the frontier regions of Karabakh. Over 500,000 Armenians left Azerbaijan during the conflict. Many of them settled in CIS countries. Our goal was to stimulate those people’s return to Karabakh, provide them with places to live and finances. As of today 45 populated areas are included in the program, and every year state- funded houses are built in each of them,” says Amirkhanyan.

He stressed that 20-30 families have filed applications for settling in Karvachar. Here from 8 to 10 houses are built annually, but there are unsolved problems with infrastructure. According to Amirkhanyan, the funds allocated to the settlement program have to be at least doubled. The state budget allocates up to 1 billion drams (about $330,000) annually. Amirkhanyan thinks that private funds have to be raised for this purpose as well.

The general opinion is that the re-population effort is carried out too slowly.

“The settlement policy is our weakest part,” says Vahram Atanesyan, the Head of NKR Parliament’s Standing Committee on Foreign Relations, deputy elected from Kashatagh. “Half-ruined houses slowly fall apart; building materials are immediately taken away and sold. They speak about the need to recover infrastructure, but at the same regions’ old water pipes are dismantled and sold out.”

In 2006, in Karabakh 2,102 infants were born; natural increase made 867 people. In 2007, 241 families have moved to Karabakh for permanent residence; the settlement program made 445 people.