Expert slams new Armenian government program for pushing back agriculture for another year’
The section of the new Armenian government’s program referring to the agriculture is a reminder of a ‘program of kind wishes the pages of which are not opened’, Hrach Berberyan, Chairman of the “Agrarian-Peasant Union” NGO, said on Monday.
Speaking to Panorama.am, he pointed to the lack of agriculture experts in the newly formed government. “Unfortunately those pages are the professional domains. I think there has been no professionals who could have opened them and presented in a way comprehensible to the public. A program drawn up by a physicist could not offer more,” he said, referring to the fact Minister of Agriculture Artur Khachatryan is not an agronomist by profession.
According to Berberyan, the government program includes good ideas regarding the irrigation system, agriculture loans or the reduction of uneven lands, but it lacks the appropriate mechanisms to realize them, stressing the need to present the agricultural reforms in a ‘clear-cut and comprehensive manner’.
“I understand that the government and political forces are preparing for elections to share the seats among themselves, that is why they do not attach importance to this sphere. However, I believe pushing back the country’s agriculture for another year is immoral,” he stated.
He stressed the need to involve experts in the sphere, instead of people affiliating with certain political force to ensure the expected results in the future.