The following call for help was published in several online magazines last week. It seems to be a very appropriate initiative considering that the food industry continues to develop in Armenia and the export of processed and packaged food may play an essential role in revitalizing the Armenian agriculture.
What is striking here is the complete absence of the relevant authorities. The Ministry of Economy that has championed the expansion of the food industry in the past 2 years as part of its economic diversification and anti-crisis strategies is not involved. Instead, one of the vice-minsters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has supported the initiative! (Does this mean that from now on one has to get Mr. Shavarsh Kocharian’s blessing for international academic partnerships?)
The Ministry of Inertia (formally known as the Ministry of Education) has simply “authorized” the program. Given that processing such an authorization is heavy duty work for the Ministry’s bureaucrats, one simply has to be grateful to them and should not expect more.
The call for help follows:
“Dear Friends and Colleagues,
This message is addressed to all of you who are professionally active in the areas of food science, technology and education, and to all of you who are willing to participate in building better education in and a better future for Armenia.
There is a need for specialists who will advance Armenia’s food industry and assist its government in the proper design and implementation of international-standard food laws and regulations. This will result in the creation of new jobs in the food industry (private sector), governmental institutions and academia. In total, these developments will boost the country’s economy and will help its products reach international markets.
With this in mind, we will commence the “Food Science Education at the Armenian State Agrarian University” project.
This project’s initiation received support from the Office of Congressman Pallone, the Founder and Chair of the Armenian Caucus in the U.S. Congress, and from Dr. Shavarsh Kocharian, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia. The Armenian Ministry of Education and Science gave its permission for the project’s development. Under the leadership of Dr. Hovik Sajadian (Yerevan State Agrarian University, Armenia) and Dr. Michael Chikindas (Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, USA), a group of specialists was assembled to coordinate this project.
However, to bring this initiative to life, we need classroom equipment, text books for the students, etc. The complete list of the required materials is available upon request from Drs. Chikindas and Sajadyan.
With this message we are kindly asking for your donations.
Personal checks are accepted and should be sent to:
Dr. Michael Chikindas
Armenian Food Science Education Initiative
Department of Food Science
Rutgers University
65 Dudley Road, New Brunswick,
New Jersey 08901, USA.
You can contact Dr. Chikindas at 732-932-9611 x218 or by writing him at tchikindas@aesop.rutgers.edu. Please, indicate in the subject line “Armenian Food Science Education Initiative”.
Equipment necessary for education and text books donations are welcome and should be directed to:
Dr. Hovik Sajadyan
Armenian Food Science Education Initiative,
Armenian State Agrarian University,
0009 Yerevan, Teryan st. 74, Armenia
Dr. Sajadyan can be reached by e-mail at hovik_s@yahoo.com. Please, indicate in the subject line “Armenian Food Science Education Initiative”.
Your kind support will be a tremendous assistance in building Food Science education in Armenia, which will ultimately contribute to the country’s economy, health and progress.”
What is striking here is the complete absence of the relevant authorities. The Ministry of Economy that has championed the expansion of the food industry in the past 2 years as part of its economic diversification and anti-crisis strategies is not involved. Instead, one of the vice-minsters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has supported the initiative! (Does this mean that from now on one has to get Mr. Shavarsh Kocharian’s blessing for international academic partnerships?)
The Ministry of Inertia (formally known as the Ministry of Education) has simply “authorized” the program. Given that processing such an authorization is heavy duty work for the Ministry’s bureaucrats, one simply has to be grateful to them and should not expect more.
The call for help follows:
“Dear Friends and Colleagues,
This message is addressed to all of you who are professionally active in the areas of food science, technology and education, and to all of you who are willing to participate in building better education in and a better future for Armenia.
There is a need for specialists who will advance Armenia’s food industry and assist its government in the proper design and implementation of international-standard food laws and regulations. This will result in the creation of new jobs in the food industry (private sector), governmental institutions and academia. In total, these developments will boost the country’s economy and will help its products reach international markets.
With this in mind, we will commence the “Food Science Education at the Armenian State Agrarian University” project.
This project’s initiation received support from the Office of Congressman Pallone, the Founder and Chair of the Armenian Caucus in the U.S. Congress, and from Dr. Shavarsh Kocharian, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia. The Armenian Ministry of Education and Science gave its permission for the project’s development. Under the leadership of Dr. Hovik Sajadian (Yerevan State Agrarian University, Armenia) and Dr. Michael Chikindas (Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, USA), a group of specialists was assembled to coordinate this project.
However, to bring this initiative to life, we need classroom equipment, text books for the students, etc. The complete list of the required materials is available upon request from Drs. Chikindas and Sajadyan.
With this message we are kindly asking for your donations.
Personal checks are accepted and should be sent to:
Dr. Michael Chikindas
Armenian Food Science Education Initiative
Department of Food Science
Rutgers University
65 Dudley Road, New Brunswick,
New Jersey 08901, USA.
You can contact Dr. Chikindas at 732-932-9611 x218 or by writing him at tchikindas@aesop.rutgers.edu. Please, indicate in the subject line “Armenian Food Science Education Initiative”.
Equipment necessary for education and text books donations are welcome and should be directed to:
Dr. Hovik Sajadyan
Armenian Food Science Education Initiative,
Armenian State Agrarian University,
0009 Yerevan, Teryan st. 74, Armenia
Dr. Sajadyan can be reached by e-mail at hovik_s@yahoo.com. Please, indicate in the subject line “Armenian Food Science Education Initiative”.
Your kind support will be a tremendous assistance in building Food Science education in Armenia, which will ultimately contribute to the country’s economy, health and progress.”
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