ArmInfo. Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan within the framework of a working trip to Syunik region got acquainted with the economic situation in the region. "The people and business of Syunik face new challenges. Naturally, I, as the Minister of Economy, had to see the situation, try to understand what we, the ministry, can do to help overcome the consequences of the war and preserve the strength of the region," Vahan Kerobyan said quoted by the press service of the Ministry.
Together with Syunik Governor Melikset Poghosyan and Deputy Minister of Economy Arman Khojoyan, the Minister visited the free economic zone "Meghri", Meghri center for purchasing dried fruits, CJSC "Agarak", Meghri cannery.
Vahan Kerobyan inquired in detail about the activities and problems of organizations, expressed his readiness to provide all possible assistance as needed. The Minister considered the functioning of the free economic zone "Meghri" a priority issue requiring an immediate solution. He expressed hope that changes there will be noticeable in the near future.
Economic issues were discussed in Syunik, including issues of irrigation, construction of barns, provision of fodder, restoration and opening of enterprises - bankrupts and many others.
Vahan Kerobyan noted that last year most of the state support programs in the field of agriculture were in demand, and efforts should be made to continue them in order to have new, more targeted, better programs to improve the efficiency of agriculture. "Our policy should be based on the creation of as large a highly productive economy as possible. Obviously, not many people can do this kind of agriculture, so we need to create many other non-agricultural jobs so that people are not forced to do small-scale agriculture," the minister of economy said. Taking into account the beginning of the agricultural season, it was decided to collect proposals from all communities in a very short time in order to understand what needs to be done for the ministry to take appropriate action. Vahan Kerobyan met with the head of the Kapan community Gevorg Parsyan, the owner of the "Goris" hotel Senik Julakyan, visited the "Lamax Group" LLC enterprise for the production of dairy and meat products of the "Syunik" farm. During all the meetings, they discussed the accumulated problems and the possibilities of supporting the Ministry of Economy in their solution. The Minister stressed that obstacles to entrepreneurs need to be removed, noting that communities need to perceive entrepreneurs as investors and work with them.