Bilateral meeting with H.E. Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the Republic of Armenia

Yerevan - FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, and Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the Republic of Armenia, met in Yerevan during the Director-General’s two-day visit in Armenia, to discuss ways to further foster collaboration between FAO and Armenia.

The President welcomed the Director-General to Armenia and expressed his appreciation for the collaboration with FAO. He noted that while addressing issues of food security, the country was also focusing on green agriculture and the environment, as Armenia was facing the impacts of climate change along with other challenges. The President also explained the problems that had arisen from the first laws on land privatization such as on the abandonment of agricultural land and land degradation, among others. He added that technical expertise from FAO was essential to help the country restore agricultural lands and forestry.

The Director-General noted that Armenia was currently facing a critical period, but noted that GDP per capita was growing and it was important to maintain a steady raising trend. He added that the country needed to ensure adequate level of investments, promote science and innovation and guarantee market accessibility to Armenian farmers to ensure agrifood system transformation. The Director-General also added that it was important to create economic conditions to enable the creation of modernized sizable commercial farms. 

The President further outlined that the efficiency of agricultural production was growing, notwithstanding the country was facing several challenges. He stated that agriculture was a great contributor to environmental problems, and it was important to mitigate the impact. Secondly, he noted that the issue of efficient and sustainable water storage and usage persisted, noting that the water supply system in the country urgently needed modernization. The third problem was the lack of sufficient forest coverage in the country and added that 30-years of non -efficient forest management had led to significant deforestation. The President noted that the country had intensively planted trees to reduce the gap, while avoiding hampering agriculture. Another issue was the gap in living conditions between urban and rural areas, and that the country needed to ensure decent living conditions in rural areas, including functioning infrastructure, sanitation and roads, among others.

Director-General invited the country to join the Digital Village Initiative to help farmers address challenges, and the pair further discussed the importance of providing guidance to farmers to ensure standardized production and marketing. In this regard, the Director-General recommended a policy of one village – one product to produce competitive products. He also added that while planting trees to restore forests was important, it was also critical to think about a green economy, such as for example planting flower bushes for honeybees. He emphasized the need for a holistic approach when designing plans for the use of land and water. Both discussed how to link the private sector with smallholder farmers in rural communities.

Finally, the President noted that the country needed FAO’s technical expertise to implement reforms, noting that the Organization could provide support in diversified sectors such as modern technologies, best practices, seeds, among others, emphasizing that increasing agricultural value-added was a key goal. Both agreed to continue working together to accelerate the agrifood system transformation in the country.

During his visit, the FAO Director-General also met with H.E. Gevorg Papoyan, Minister for Economy and H.E. Arman Khojoyan, Deputy Minister of Economy, as the Ministry was also responsible for agriculture. The Minister noted that agriculture was the most important sector of the economy in Armenia, with a crucial effect on economic growth and the development of local communities. The Minister pointed out that the country was facing many challenges, including food security and climate change, among others, and added that the Government was grateful for the support from FAO in this regard. He further conveyed his appreciation for the programmes implemented over the past years, and they discussed ways to establish a national pathway to transform the agrifood systems in Armenia through digitalization, biotechnology, and a new business model. The Director-General invited Armenia to join the FAO Hand-in-Hand Initiative which could provide the support needed to address many of the challenges facing the country.