COOPERATION FOR THE GENDER EQUALITY

National Assembly of RA
Nov 30 2009
Armenia

On November 30, within the project Wo/Men in Politics the RA National
Assembly in the name of the Vice Speaker Mrs. Arevik Petrosyan and the
British Council in the name of the British Council Office Director in
Armenia Ms. Arevik Saribekyan signed a Memorandum of Understanding,
by which cooperation on the issues of gender equality was envisaged.

Vice Speaker Mrs. Arevik Petrosyan noted: the gender issues are
in the centre of attention of legislative body and highlighted any
effective cooperation directed to the solution of those issues. She
expressed hope that such cooperation would also develop with the
British Council. Mrs. Petrosyan noted that the Armenian Parliament
shares the European approaches on gender equality, according to which,
that equality is an important precondition of full honouring of human
rights, democracy, elimination of poverty and provision of social
justice and progress of legal state. According to Mrs. Petrosyan’s
assessment, in ensuring the gender equality, the National Assembly
of the current convocation has prior solutions: the gender issues are
also one of the main directions of the activities of the NA Standing
Committee on the Protection of Human Rights and Public Rights, in
the NA leadership the women deputies also are actively involved, the
women deputies are actively involved both in internal and external
processes. The Vice Speaker of the Parliament noted that the British
Council had implemented a number of projects. Mrs. Arevik Petrosyan
noted that with NA Speaker’s knowledge the directions of cooperation
had been agreed, and today this cooperation would be laid down on
the more coordinated bases by the Memorandum of Understanding.

The British Council Office Director i n Armenia Ms. Arevik Saribekyan
noted that the rise of women’s role in the politics had always been
one of the prior directions of the British Council. She highlighted
the cooperation of the Armenian Parliament and British Council,
expressing hope that it would be more visible and stable by the
Memorandum of Understanding.

Deputy Head of Mission of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland Mr. Gareth Wynn Owen also welcomed the cooperation
of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and the British
Council.

NA Vice Speaker Mrs. Arevik Petrosyan expressed hope that though the
Memorandum was signed with one year term, but would be possible to
continue later, too.