Cooperation Agreement to Preserve Western Armenian

YEREVAN — On October 28, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan and Director of the Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Razmig Panossian signed an Agreement on Cooperation between the RA Ministry of Diaspora and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation during a ceremony held at the ministry.

RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan greeted the guest of honor and particularly mentioned: “It has already been one-and-a-half year since Mr. Panossian assumed the honorable office of Director of the Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. He is one of the exceptional officials who, in that period, visited different parts of the Armenian Diaspora and conducted a correct needs assessment. He examined the effectiveness of programs carried out within Armenian communities and submitted his proposals to the Foundation’s administration.

As minister, I am grateful to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, which carries out well-organized activities in the Armenian Diaspora. The Foundation also carries out effective programs with other structures and organizations in Armenia, including the Institute of Ancient Manuscripts after Mesrop Mashtots (Matenadaran), the National Academy of Sciences and Yerevan State University. The main goal of the Foundation is to enhance Armenian Studies, and the main emphasis is on the preservation and development of the Western Armenian language.

Director of the Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Razmig Panossian expressed gratitude for the reception, attached importance to the efforts for preservation and development of the Western Armenian language and particularly mentioned the following: “We have to make the Western Armenian language a practical language for young Armenians, especially Armenian youth in the Diaspora. I am pleased with the fact that the Ministry of Diaspora is concerned about the issue since it is the most important issue facing the Armenian Diaspora. If we can’t preserve the Western Armenian language, nobody will be able to do it.”

Attaching importance to the preservation and development of Armenian culture and language in the Armenian Diaspora and the need for strengthening relations in science, education, publishing and culture within the frames of the Armenia-Diaspora partnership, the RA Ministry of Diaspora and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation signed an Agreement on Cooperation through which they will collaborate to publish and disseminate materials for the teaching of the Western Armenian language, to support the creation of a Western Armenian language teaching center, to provide scholarships to Diaspora Armenian students pursuing courses in Armenian studies at Armenian universities and more.