RA Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan received members of the Eastern Committee of German Economy (Ost-Ausschuss) and the Association for the Development of the Land of Thuringia (LEG Türingen) headed by Dr. Stefan Blechschmidt.

ESCS Deputy Minister Arthur Martirosyan and Chairman of the Higher Education and Science Committee Sargis Hayotsyan also attended the meeting.

ESCS Minister Zhanna Andreasyan welcomed the delegation, highlighting the significance of close cooperation between Armenia and Germany in various directions, and expressed confidence in the execution of new cooperation initiatives and agreements within the framework of the delegation's visit to Armenia.

Zhanna Andreasyan, outlined three areas of cooperation between Armenia and Germany, with a focus on the design of the Academic City.

“Currently, our primary partnership is with the “GMP International GmbH Architects and Engineers” a German architectural company, responsible for designing the layout of the academic city. The final version will shortly be available,” said Zhanna Andreasyan.

According to the Minister, the second direction is developing a new law "On Vocational Education and Training", which has also been implemented based on the German experience. The third direction focuses on advancing the teaching and promotion of the German language in Armenia the implementation of which is greatly facilitated by the Goethe Center. The Minister hoped that collaborative programs promoting the German language would further be extended.

During the meeting members of the Eastern Committee of German Economy (Ost-Ausschuss) and the Association for the Development of the Land of Thuringia (LEG Türingen) expressed their interest in the VET system in Armenia and outlined the possibilities of cooperation with training centers in Germany. ESCS Minister Zhanna Andreasyan welcomed the initiative of the German side and presented reforms and opportunities for cooperation in the field of primary and secondary vocational education in the Republic of Armenia.

The Minister, in particular, touched upon the organization of vocational education within the framework of the dual model with the help of the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ). “As an important component of the education curriculum for students and work-based learning, dual education will enable students to enter the labour market professionally and contribute to economic growth,” noted the Minister.

During the meeting, the representative of the “Atlas International” office presented the “German Business Mission to Armenia and Georgia” program, which has the objective of providing high protection against fraud and forgery in the digital domain and aims to boost business development in optimizing production and logistics services.

The parties agreed to discuss the potential of integrating the program into the secondary vocational education system and prospects for cooperation in this regard.