Minister Hakobyan says maintenance of Armenian identity is among priority issues of Armenia and Diaspora

The maintenance of Armenian identity remains one of the most important issues for Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora, minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan said at the plenary session of the closure of the 6th Armenia-Diaspora forum.

“One of our major issues remains the maintenance of the Armenian identity since we all understand that the Armenian communities are becoming smaller in a rapidly changing world. But I am convinced that if jointly continue our work, we will be able to bring many Armenians to our territory. We face a problem of self-organization in certain communities. The number of mix marriages gradually increases, the number of people bearing the mother tongue decreases, Armenian schools and cultural centers are being closed, there are problems of maintenance of Armenian cultural heritage in some countries”, the minister said.

She stated that there are Armenian communities in 118 countries of the world, and they have different composition and different legal status. “We have cities, villages that are completely Armenian-populated. It’s typical for Armenians to quickly integrate to a foreign environment and maintain the national features. Armenians are able to quickly integrate with the public and economic life of other countries by creating an honor for the Armenian people and Armenia”, Hranush Hakobyan said.

The minister informed that there are 829 communities, 30.000 Armenian organizations, 38 pan-Armenian organizations, 724 operating churches and monasteries, more than thousand schools, 637 cultural centers in the Armenian Diaspora. “We have powerful structural units that were established and work for the maintenance of the Armenian identity, and the main weapon for the maintenance of the Armenian identity is our youth”, the Diaspora minister said.