On September 5, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Kuwait to Armenia Bassam Mohammad Al-Qabandi and Head of the Department of General Education at Yerevan Municipality Gayane Soghomonyan took part in the solemn opening ceremony of the newly equipped computer classroom at Nar-Dos Primary School N 14 in Yerevan where there are nearly 100 Syrian-Armenian schoolchildren who have moved to Armenia as a result of the civil war in Syria. The classroom was newly equipped through funding provided by the State of Kuwait.

The school was supported through the Program for Support to the Educational Issues Facing Syrian-Armenians in Armenia in accordance with the memorandum that was signed by the Center for Coordination of Syrian-Armenians’ Issues NGO and the Embassy of the State of Kuwait in Armenia under the initiative of the RA Ministry of Diaspora on 27 September 2013.

RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Kuwait to Armenian Bassam Mohammad Al-Qabandi cut the red ribbon opening the computer classroom named after the State of Kuwait as the schoolchildren expressed their heartfelt greetings.

RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan congratulated the students and teachers of Nar-Dos School on the start of the new academic year and mentioned that the school finally has a classroom equipped with the information technologies that the children needed so much.

Afterwards, Minister Hranush Hakobyan expressed gratitude to the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Kuwait to Armenia for supporting the Syrian-Armenians and providing them with financial assistance from the very first days of the Syrian crisis. The opening of the computer classroom at Nar-Dos School was part of the financial assistance provided by the State of Kuwait. “It’s not by chance that on 18 August 2014 the United Nations recognized Kuwait as an “international humanitarian center” and Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah received the title of Humanitarian Leader for his humanitarian efforts. Your State supports Syrians having settled in different countries around the world, including the Syrian-Armenians. I ask you to convey the words of gratitude of the Government of the Republic of Armenia and particularly the RA Ministry of Diaspora to Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, who always provides humanitarian assistance to countries in need of that, including to the Syrian-Armenians having settled in different countries. I’m certain that the small, yet organized community of Armenians in Kuwait has served and will serve as a reliable bridge of friendship between the two countries,” the RA Minister of Diaspora mentioned.

The Minister also expressed gratitude to Yerevan Municipality for approving the proposal of the RA Ministry of Diaspora and laying strong foundations for advanced Arab language courses at the school. “I would also like to thank the school administration and all the teachers and students for cordially receiving the Syrian-Armenian children having moved to the Homeland as a result of the Syrian crisis,” the Minister underlined.

The RA Minister of Diaspora voiced hope that the programs being carried out with the State of Kuwait and Kuwait’s Ambassador would be ongoing.

Afterwards, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Kuwait to Armenia Bassam Mohammad Al-Qabandi greeted and congratulated the students and mentioned that the opening of the computer classroom was made possible thanks to the RA Minister of Diaspora’s generous attitude. “Today we have gathered here and we see that all that we have done is not enough. Our assistance doesn’t end with this. We have found out that the RA Ministry of Diaspora has undertaken the construction of the New Aleppo district for Syrian-Armenians in Ashtarak city. We’ll try to do our best to contribute to construction of that district,” Ambassador Bassam Mohammad Al-Qabandi said.

The Ambassador was pleased to add that the Armenians residing in Kuwait have no problems with the Kuwaiti government. “Armenians are diligent and helpful members of the society. Your country can take pride in them,” the Ambassador mentioned.

Head of the Department of General Education at Yerevan Municipality Gayane Soghomonyan expressed her words of gratitude and particularly mentioned that the Nar-Dos School is always in the focus of the RA Ministry of Diaspora and Yerevan Municipality. “By the proposal of the RA Minister of Diaspora, the schoolchildren have been taking advanced Arabic language courses at this school for the past two years in a row, and the school that opened its doors for our compatriots during the catastrophic days for Syria truly needed to be equipped with a computer classroom,” Mrs. Soghomonyan mentioned.

In the end, the schoolchildren recited poems in Arabic, performed the Armenian and Kuwaiti national anthems and recited the poem “Word to my Son” (Khosk im Vordun).