ARMENIAN SCIENCE NOT TO FACE FUNDING CUTBACK

ARKA
Dec 23, 2009

YEREVAN, December 23, /ARKA/. Chairman of the Armenian State Committee
on Science, Samvel Harutyunian, said today science funding will not
be cut next year and will be 8.2 billion Drams, as much as in 2008.

Speaking at a news conference convened to sum up the outgoing year he
said this inspires hopes that all projected programs will be fulfilled.

He said the scientific community is grateful to the president and
prime minister for keeping funding at the same level as in 2008,
despite the ongoing financial-economic crisis.

He said next year scientific research funding procedure will change
and researchers will have to take part in competitions to win grants.

Researchers from Nagorno-Karabakh and the Armenian Diaspora will be
eligible to participate as well.

Samvel Harutyunian said the State Committee on Science plans to
continue cooperation with peers abroad and international organizations,
to establish research centers in Armenia and attract young scientists.

He said they plan to establish especially close cooperation with
colleagues from Russia, Belarus and Germany. Besides, they plan to
continue cooperation with International Scientific-Technical Center,
French Centre National de Recherche Scientifique, U.S. Civil Research
and Development Center and the National Fund for Science and Advanced
Technologies.

He said the Armenian research centers are expected to join the
Black Sea Interconnection’s GRID system , an international network
infrastructure among research and education networks in the South
Caucasus region that has 240 members.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress