VIDEO: The Prime Minister Says It Is Impossible to Hang Citizens from Their Feet and Keep Them in Swamps

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held a consultation meeting during which the bill on Higher Education and Science and the proposed amendments were presented. This was reported by the press office of the Government of the Republic of Armenia.

The Prime Minister noted that the aforementioned bill is important and fundamental. He stated, "What is the necessity of having such a project and making amendments? First, it is a recognition that we have serious problems in the educational system. And it should be stated directly that our educational system does not ensure the development of our country, and even more so, it does not fulfill the aspirations and ambitions of our country, our people, our nation, which are already formulated as government programs and strategies that we have spoken about many times. Therefore, I want to emphasize once again that the government will decisively and consistently move towards significant changes in this matter, and, as I have said several times, it will not be possible to hang the citizens of the Republic of Armenia from their feet and keep them in swamps. I want this to be clearly stated by all of us.

However, this political acknowledgment is not absolute in the sense that we cannot say that we are the sole source of truth and have found the key to all possible questions. It is very clear that this cannot continue, but, naturally, we not only need to set the task of reforming the system, but we also need to reform the system in such a way that it ensures not only our future normal development but also minimizes the time we have lost. Because while we have stood still during this time, serious changes have taken place globally in the educational sector, and we need to choose other paths to make up for that lost time and content.

But it is important that we can genuinely initiate a very interested and professional discussion and hear all opinions, extract rationality from the opinions heard, and where we can refine our positions more, make our reforms more effective, we must do that as well. I mean that dialogue should have a key significance in this whole process, and naturally, this dialogue is also a priority for the government, because I am convinced that the success of any reform largely depends on how many people related to that reform consider it their own, their authorship.

Therefore, our task is to highlight the circle of authors as much as possible. Although it should also be noted that the Government of Armenia, which has the trust and support of the people of Armenia, can be the author in all cases when we see that our willingness to engage in dialogue is used not to make the process more effective but when our willingness for dialogue is attempted to be used to halt the processes. This will not happen, and I want all of us to acknowledge this and move forward clearly," emphasized Prime Minister Pashinyan.

The Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports, Arayik Harutyunyan, stated that the bill envisages the integration of higher education and science systems, the transition to a one-tier system of degree award, the full introduction of a three-tier higher education system, the replacement of the “Full-time and Distance” education system with a “Full or Partial Load” system, the implementation of educational programs or individual courses in foreign languages, the introduction of new principles and mechanisms for organizing student admissions, and the depoliticization of university governance.

It is also planned to introduce new principles and mechanisms for financing higher education and science, the autonomy of universities and scientific organizations, academic freedoms and accountability, stimulation of youth in the administrative staff and academic composition of universities and scientific organizations, and assigning the teaching of courses in Armenian language, Armenian literature, and Armenian history to the authority of universities for all specialties, among others.

The Prime Minister stressed the importance of comprehensive discussion of the bill with all interested parties and noted that, as a result, it should provide conceptual solutions to the existing problems in the field of education and science.