US AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA VISITS MAYORS OF DILIJAN AND VANADZOR

armradio.am
04.03.2009 15:54

U.S. Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch visited Dilijan and Vanadzor on
March 4, meeting with local officials in both places and reviewing U.S.

government-funded projects. In her talks with Vanadzor Mayor Samvel
Darbinian and Dilijan Mayor Armen Santrosyan, she spoke about issues
related to the current situation and needs of the communities, the
priorities and projects of the two municipalities, their efforts
to protect the environment, and their areas of cooperation with the
U.S. government and other donors.

Following her meeting with mayor Santorsyan, the Ambassador visited
Dili Ltd., a maker of cheese. Through the USAID/EBRD Business Advisory
Services (BAS) program, a consulting firm was contracted to help Dili
develop a modern tri-lingual website, which serves as a successful
marketing tool contributing to a 15-20% increase in sales.

After meeting Mayor Darbinian, Ambassador Yovanovitch stopped at the
Grisar Ltd. Pasta Company, another business that has benefitted from
the BAS program. BAS contracted a local consultancy firm to help
Grisar expand sales by conducting research on the Yerevan market,
develop company branding strategy and promotional materials and
identify potential merchandisers and supermarket chains for product
distribution.

The Business Advisory Services (BAS) program has helped small and
medium size businesses throughout Armenia. BAS operates on both the
demand side and on the supply side, stimulating demand by raising
the understanding in the private sector of the potential benefits
of using external consultants and directly increasing the supply and
quality of local advisory services.

In Vanadzor, Ambassador Yovanovitich also visited the Advocacy and
Assistance Center, established through the USAID Mobilizing Action
Against Corruption (MAAC) program. The Center provides support to
citizens to help them resolve corruption-related problems, including
legal advice and assistance in the legal processing of complaints. The
AAC will also provide citizens with channels for reporting corruption
and directing complaints to government agencies.

Launched in July 2007 as a comprehensive initiative aimed at
reducing corruption, the USAID MAAC program will provide support to
anticorruption activities of the Government of Armenia and civil
society by (1) establishing a mechanism to address grievances
and effect structural and procedural reforms, (2) designing and
implementing anti-corruption initiatives with targeted government
agencies, (3) supporting civil society organizations in developing
innovative approaches to mobilize action against corruption, and (4)
increasing awareness among youth and adults against corruption.