ՌA Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan received the newly appointed Ambassador of the Republic of Portugal to Armenia Madalena Fischer.

Zhanna Andreasyan congratulated the ambassador on her appointment and wished him effective work during the diplomatic mission for the benefit of the development of Armenian-Portuguese friendly relations. The CSMS minister expressed his belief that he will contribute to further strengthening and deepening of relations between Armenia and Portugal.

Ambassador Fischer thanked for the reception and emphasized that there is great potential for close cooperation between the two countries in educational, scientific, cultural and several other directions. During the meeting, the parties expressed readiness to expand cooperation in the above-mentioned areas.

Touching on the prospects of cooperation in the field of education, Minister of Education and Culture, Zhanna Andreasyan emphasized that Armenia is in the stage of educational reforms, and all the targets are defined by the RA education development plan until 2030 adopted by the National Assembly as a law. The ultimate goal of the project is to have an effective and internationally competitive educational system based on national and universal values, aimed at the development of the Republic of Armenia.

"I know that the working group of the National Assembly had a meeting with the representatives of the Portuguese Ministry of Education in October 2022 and discussed issues related to inclusive education. This is a very important direction for us. One of the important strategic targets is the internationalization of higher education institutions, in this regard we can also consider the perspectives of cooperation," said Zhanna Andreasyan.

The minister expressed his belief that, in particular, there is potential for cooperation in the fields of exchange of student experience, digital economy, agriculture, and renewable energy, which can be implemented both at the university and professional education levels.

Referring to the cooperation in the field of higher education and science, Zhanna Andreasyan noted that the Ministry of Education and Culture is consistently working in universities, museum institutes, and centers of foreign countries in the direction of teaching Armenian and Armenological subjects, as well as promoting Armenological research. About a dozen Armenian studies centers operate abroad, which receive funding from the state budget of Armenia. Zhanna Andreasyan offered to consider the possibility of establishing an Armenian studies center in one of the Portuguese universities.

The minister also expressed his willingness to share the experience of the programs that are already successfully implemented in our country, in particular, "Tumo" and "Armat". Ambassador Madalena Fisher noted that they are interested in this opportunity. He also informed that two "Tumo" centers will be established in two Portuguese cities, which, according to the ambassador, is an important initiative.

Minister Zhanna Andreasyan also highlighted the perspectives of cultural cooperation. In this context, on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the famous Armenian composer Aram Khachatryan, she proposed to include his works in the cultural institutions of Portugal as a tribute to the memory of the world classic. The parties also discussed the possibilities of joint film production, the organization of exhibitions, and cooperation in other directions of modern art.

"As a result of the humanitarian crisis established in Nagorno-Karabakh, a number of fundamental rights of around 120,000 residents have been violated. 30 thousand of them are children, and that's why I want to address the violation of their right to education. Due to the impossibility of food supply, and periodic disruptions of gas and electricity supply by Azerbaijan, educational processes are almost not carried out in kindergartens, schools, and other educational institutions, which is an unacceptable situation. I think the international response will contribute to the settlement of the situation," Zhanna Andreasyan said.

Other issues of bilateral interest were also discussed during the meeting. The parties expressed their willingness to discuss the possibility of signing an interstate memorandum, which would define the directions of cooperation more clearly.

It should be noted that Ambassador Madalena Fischer presented her credentials to RA President Vahagn Khachaturyan on February 8.