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Chaired by Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, a discussion was held in the Office of Government concerning the ongoing preparations for Armenia’s agricultural census process. The meeting was attended by international donors, representatives from the World Bank and Armenia-based foreign embassies.

The Prime Minister stressed the importance of the agricultural census in several terms: “We have not yet conducted a census in our country, while it is crucial for us to learn the real situation in agriculture. The share of agriculture in GDP has considerably increased over the past 5 years due to structural changes and a variety of programs.

A new strategic development program has been designed by the government for the agricultural sector. Agriculture can no longer be separated from the countryside, because those individuals not engaged in farming activities should be employed otherwise. Large-scale investment projects are underway to this end.

We are determined to hold a census in the field of agriculture, which is going to be a priority for the government in 2013-2016,” Tigran Sargsyan noted.

World Bank Yerevan Office Head Jean-Michel Happi said to be supportive of Armenia’s comprehensive agricultural census process. Given the importance of the agricultural sector, the World Bank has endorsed a 200 thousand-dollar grant in preparation for the census.

The program was also backed by the representatives of the EU twinning program and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Minister of Agriculture Sergo Karapetyan said in turn that the full census will help shape an integrated system for a more effective work in this area.

The agricultural census is intended to collect information on agricultural land, livestock, agricultural machinery, agricultural buildings and facilities, human and material resources.

According to the UN guidelines, member States are supposed to take stock in agriculture at least every 10 years, while no such action has so far been made in Armenia.