Becoming minister was never my dream – Sergo Karapetyan

In an exclusive interview with Tert.am, Armenian Minister of Agriculture Sergo Karapetyan has spoken of his career path, reflecting on his past and present, and his role in enriching the sector as a government official. He has addressed the problems in his agency and the policies towards attracting the young human capital.

The interview, in an abridged form, is presented below.

How did you become a minister?

It was quite by chance. It never even occurred to me that I would become a minister. I neither dreamt nor thought about being a minister or working in the government sector. I was at a quite advanced age when I got an appointment. For 42 years on end, I was a man of the manufacturing sector. I was a worker at the Canned Food Factory of Artashat (Ararat region) starting from 1968. I have done any kind of work, [performing the duties of] an inspector, quality control expert, laboratory director, chemist on duty, goods manager, chief power engineering specialist and a CEO.

They say the president of the republic appointed you a minister after a key meeting where he chanced to ask you a question about the agriculture sector. Is that true?

I was a member of the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen, so we met the president a couple of times a year to brief him on the problems in the sector. That day, I did speak of the problems in agriculture, and that speech did really become crucial for me: I was offered the ministerial post afterwards. I was taken by surprise, to be frank. I didn’t expect such a thing; it had never occurred to me.”

So, it wasn’t your dream to become a minister?

Never in my life have I thought or dreamt about that.”

How do you treat the media’s criticism addressed to you?

To be honest, I feel very bad. That’s probably due to inexperience. I haven’t worked in the government sector, and I am not used to criticism, so I feel very upset. What’s even more, the criticism is never documented. The Ministry of Agriculture is an open agency; we have nothing to hide from journalists. We work here day and night, solving vital problems for the country.”

Mr Minister, isn’t openness and emotionality a hindrance to your career?”

It isn’t my goal to make a career. I am not a careerist in the classical sense of the word. Neither does my age permit me to aspire for a career. I don’t know how many years I will work, but I have always been this kind of person, whether a worker or a minister. Of course, I burst out with emotions a little easily and get upset easily upon finding myself unable to offer a solution to a problem.”

|It is often the lickspittles that make career with a giddy success, especially in government offices. And lickspittles are normally those who have no professional qualities. This character pushes serious specialists to intrigues. So what to do? ”

The problem with the lickspittles is as old as the earth itself. For me, a serious specialist is a value, and what my almost half-a-century experience tells me, a good specialist is normally a moral person. There are no favorites in the agency I head. I try to give promotion to a good specialist and bring the best human resources from outside. My requirements are strict: a person must work honestly, never expecting resources from the state budget. We have totally done away with that problem.

Does it mean you have zero-level corruption at the Ministry?

You may make inquiries yourselves. We do not have such a problem. I demand honest work from everybody, be it a first deputy [minister] or a specialist. We are a small country, hence it isn’t possible to work dishonestly and manage to hide away. But this doesn’t mean they should have other temptations.

But the low salaries in the state sector disperse the professional capital little by little. It is difficult to make a professional stick to office for [a salary of] 70,000-80,000 Drams (approx. $170-$190). Isn’t that likely to cause the professional bank’s drain into the business sector?

Yes, the price for the same profession is almost three times higher in the private sector. The problem with the human resources is very serious. You never find a replacement upon sacking someone; there are very few good specialists. We now have young human resources who know languages and are skilled enough in their jobs. They could have a big success in the business sector but they have chosen the government sector for their own progress. I appreciate those specialist sand want very much to make the Ministry’s professional bank younger.”

Isn’t it difficult for you to talk to a villager today? What do you speak of to tormented people, often stricken by poverty and looking forward to their sons’ return?

Since the very first day in office, I have tried to put an equal sign between us. I even change my clothing when going to villages. They know better than us that we must preserve our land by cultivating it. I speak to them without restraint of both our problems and omissions which have piled up over the course of years. I tell them that we have to work together to find a solution to the problems. [The government] implements large-scale assistance programs in this sector, trying to stand by the villager to alleviate his burden. Who is expected to cultivate our land, feed our people and preserve our homeland?”

What is the level of our food security index today?

That’s 41% for wheat products; we are trying to raise the figure to 65%. The self-sufficiency index for food products is 60%; it is planned to raise it to 80% until 2020.

Is that real or feasible?

Why not? In case of circulating the uncultivated lands, making an effective use of arable areas, sowing sorts with a high crop yield and conducting a literate struggle against weeds, we’ll have a higher level of food security.