A community initiative group, a driving force for change. The initiative group of Sarigiugh is working for the “revival” of the culture house of the village

Here is Border Sarigyugh; 2 kilometers from the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Although Sarigiugh is a settlement with development potential and resources, there are still many multifaceted problems in the village, among which the most worrying and problematic is the deplorable, half-ruined state of the culture house.

The House of Culture, which ceased operations in 2007, started operating in 1984. The House of Culture had long been the center of the cultural life of the residents of Sarigiugh and neighboring villages.

Even today, the doors of the house of culture with a once lively and rich past are not closed, but not because the cultural life is in full swing like before and queues of spectators at the entrance, but because the doors and windows of the building, as well as all the property, have been destroyed, disappeared and only the unique illustrations left on the moss-covered and half-ruined walls hint at the building’s former opulence. Moreover, being forgotten, the building can be classified among the structures with an emergency status.
In 2021, an initiative group was formed to find a solution to the problem in cooperation with local authorities and other interested and concerned structures.

As a structure that implements community consolidation and advocacy campaigns, the representatives of CYC were told about the problem of the House of Culture. The fact that the village is on the border was special to the structure, and keeping the culture alive on the border is of strategic importance.

As a support, in 2021 two members of the initiative group were given the opportunity to study the best examples of solving community problems in the Czech Republic. The Czech NESEHNUTÍ organization, which has extensive experience in organizing public campaigns on environmental and gender issues, hosted the Armenian delegation to exchange experience.

In 2021, with the efforts of the initiative group and community authorities, some repair works have been carried out; the roof of the building was covered, which can temporarily save the building from final collapse. However, the issue of the installation of gutters is still open, and therefore, rainwater poses a great risk for such a building.