'I can invest my knowledge and expertise in Armenia's development' – deputy Diaspora minister 'optimistic about future career'

Deputy Minister of Diaspora Babken Ter-Grigoryan is reported to be among the possible candidates to hold the post of Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs after the planned government changes.

Under a recently initiated bill. proposing reforms to the cabinet structure, the Ministry of Diaspora will be re-organized into a new agency adjunct to the Office of the Prime Minister of Armenia. For comments on this and other expected developments, Tert.am has interviewed the deputy minister.

Mr Ter-Grigoryan, have you personally received a proposal for taking over the Office of the Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs. Do you see yourself in that position?

No, I haven't received such a proposal. Ever since I moved to Armenia for permanent residence in 2012, I have treated absolutely everything - any initiative of mine and any commitment – as  a cornerstone of my official duties to serve Armenia and to invest my best possible efforts towards the well-being of this state. Amid the current processes – imparting a completely new logic to the Armenia-Diaspora relations and upgrading them to a new platform - the institute of the Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs is gaining significance as a body requiring utmost responsibility in the context of our cooperation. Being a Diaspora-Armenian myself, I have the full understanding of that difficult responsibility and the existing challenges. And I think I can, to the best of my efforts, contribute my expertise, knowledge and enthusiasm to the development of Armenia.

An eligible contender for the Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs is required to have command of at least two foreign languages, as well as a minimum length of service of five years, plus university education. Your biographic records suggest that you have worked in different international organizations. Anyway, do you have the required five-year experience in the field of Armenia-Diaspora relations?

Yes, the remark was to the point; I have worked in a number of international organizations. What is worded as a ''five-year length of service'' in the requirements for this post of Commissioner does not verbally imply a five-year experience of engagement in Diaspora affairs - or in public administration in general. Having lived in France, the United States and Great Britain, maintaining contactx with the Armenian-Diaspora and numerous representatives of Armenian communities, I am permanently in the know of the problems and challenges facing the Diaspora, as well as the cooperation potentials.

How do you envision the work of a Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs? Can one person potentially coordinate the 7 million Armenian Diaspora?

The Office of the Chief Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs is going to hire professionals. Let us bear in mind, on the other hand, that there are also [government] agencies with special subdivisions that work with the Diaspora proper; hence that collaboration will certainly continue - with a new quality and clearly outlined trends.  I think this kind of approach, i.e. – that one person will be in charge for coordinating the multi-million Diaspora, is really superficial and stops short of reflecting the new and ambitious objectives we have set forth at the current phase of our relations with the Diaspora. I would like to underline once again that the Office of the Commissioner will be tasked with coordinating not just the Diaspora but rather - the activities assigned to the Government.