Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on February 24 attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the EU Tumo Engineering and Applied Sciences Complex (EUCC), a €42.5mn project aimed at creating a regional STEM hub near Yerevan’s Hrazdan Gorge.

Officials said the complex will boost Armenia’s standing as a centre for engineering and technology, while opening new opportunities for investment, business cooperation, and education aligned with global standards.

The 18,000-square-metre complex, designed by internationally acclaimed firm MVRDV, will host TUMO Labs, research and application laboratories, co-working and co-financing platforms, a conference centre, business spaces, and a local branch of the French programming school, 42 Yerevan.

The project is partially funded by the European Union, which contributed a €12.5mn grant to the Simonyan Educational Foundation under the EU for Innovation program, reflecting Armenia’s push to strengthen technological education and innovation capacity. 

In his speech at the ceremony, Pashinyan spoke of the need to “bring the future and place it in the present” and the importance of education for access to a good life. “A good life is accessible to all those who can and want to follow the path of education, regardless of age,” he said.

Since 2020, TUMO Lab and 42 Yerevan have provided innovative education to thousands of students and implemented more than 55 projects in collaboration with local and international companies, fostering knowledge transfer and technological development.

Officials said the EUCC will serve as an expanded platform for applied science, incubation, and engineering education, aiming to strengthen Armenia’s regional leadership in STEM and attract further investment in the sector.