YEREVAN—President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian joined the participants of the Sevan Startup Summit 2019 via skype yesterday evening. Sarkissian spoke to attendees, inquired about the process of the Summit, and answered audience questions, the President’s Office told Armenpress.

“This is a wonderful initiative, and I want to thank all those who started this. I believe this initiative will very successful. It’s especially important for Armenia, because, Armenia, as I see it in the future, should have a strong presence in the field of high and new technologies, and should be a startup country. Maybe, one day, we will have a chance to declare Armenia the capital of the world’s startup,” stated President Sarkissian. “Startup is one of the institutes that unites the youth which is not only valuable, but important, as well.”

While speaking about opportunities to further develop startups, and their conditions, Sarkissian highlighted the necessity of high-quality education. “In order to include Armenia in the list of the leading countries, several conditions are required—such as quality of education. High-quality education should be offered to everyone, from the center of Yerevan up to bordering villages. The main mission of each teacher is to find talents, and startups will help us in finding individuals with talent,” noted Sarkissian.

The next key factor, according to the President, is the presence of leading international companies in Armenia, which will create an environment for the development of startups. “We cannot properly create a startup without using new science and technological infrastructures. That’s why we are working with a number of major companies, such as IBM, Google, Leonardo, to ensure their presence in Armenia. If major international companies operate in Armenia, they will give a special developmental quality,” the President said.

The next important factor is the mutual connection with the world. “We are naturally connected with the world, as Armenians live everywhere. Many talented Armenians work in California, the Silicon Valley,” he noted. “Therefore, it’s important to create a hub between all, and not only between Armenians. The 21st century will belong to individuals who have the ambition and courage to take on a challenge and present new ideas.”

President Sarkissian emphasized that Armenia is a promising place for talented youth. “Young talents are always in search for a challenging environment, and that environment is the technological space of the 21st century. Thus, Armenia must provide this kind of space,” he said.

Sarkissian expressed readiness to assist the Summit. “I am with you. I am a member of your startup community, ready to help you create a new path to work with the new generation. You are young, everything is ahead of you, but the world is moving quite rapidly. Thus, you must also be swift.”

The Sevan Startup Summit is attended by 120 startup teams from Armenia and 45 countries, as well as over 1,000 entrepreneurs from different parts of the world. The summit aims at promoting innovative ideas, as well as establishing communication between the business representatives.