On 14 April, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan met with the students who had finished conducting their internships at the RA Ministry of Diaspora this year.

The Minister congratulated the students of Yerevan State University, the European Regional Academy and the Public Administration Academy of the Republic of Armenia for having successfully completed their internships at the Ministry. She stated that each of them had to make their contribution to Armenia’s development and added the following: “For that, you need to be educated and competitive, have a high sense of responsibility for your job, be optimistic and always aspire to gain more knowledge.”

Presenting the activities that are carried out with Diaspora Armenians, Minister Hranush Hakobyan emphasized that the main goals of the Ministry were to preserve the Armenian identity, use the potential of Diaspora Armenians for Armenia’s development and implement programs promoting repatriation. “We can’t command the Diaspora, but we try to create a healthy atmosphere of confidence and partnership through dialogue and the presentation of our programs and projects. I am glad to mention that, to this day, no Diaspora Armenian has been disappointed with the Ministry. What’s more, hundreds of young Diaspora Armenians have come to Armenia and received their higher education here,” the Minister added.

Afterwards, the Minister listened to all the interns attending the meeting. They all expressed their opinions on their internships at the Ministry. Student of Yerevan State University Mariam Simonyan stated that she had learned a lot at the editorial office of Hayern Aysor electronic newspaper. “I even wrote two articles that were published by two Diaspora Armenian media outlets. I really liked the job and would love to return and work here,” she stated.

Student of the European Regional Academy Aram Alexanyan added the following: “The employees of the Ministry are professionals, and I had the opportunity to get a clear picture of Armenian media outlets of the Diaspora. It is very important to know how our compatriots abroad organize the daily activities of the community and what events they carry out to preserve the Armenian identity.”

All the interns emphasized that the employees of the Ministry work in a healthy atmosphere and that this helped them integrate quickly and master the knowledge they needed to master. “I especially liked the “Ari Tun” Program and would gladly host one of the participants of the program,” student of Yerevan State University Vardan Poghosyan said.

Internship supervisor of the Faculty of International Relations at Yerevan State University Grigor Balasanyan expressed special gratitude to the Ministry and Minister Hranush Hakobyan for organizing the internships of the University’s students at a high level for all these years and said the following: “We only regret the fact that the internship only lasts four weeks. Our students will be gladly involved in and help organize the “Ari Tun” Program and the “Diaspora” Summer School Program.”

Highly appreciating the willingness of the students and professors to be involved in the programs of the Ministry and show support, Minister Hranush Hakobyan stated the following: “Consider the Ministry of Diaspora yours. Come and participate in our events. We will gladly help all the interns who will come and wish to participate in our summer programs.”

At the end, the students asked the Minister their questions of concern and received exhaustive answers.