YEREVAN, JANUARY 10, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government plans to enhance the country’s ties with its Diaspora through special commissioners who will work with Armenian communities around the world.

Diaspora Commissioners will be appointed in various cities across the world with large presence of Armenians.

Zareh Sinanyan, the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs of Armenia, told Armenpress that his agency has a list of potential candidates for the job.

“Over the past two years we’ve been mostly working in the communities, explaining what the commissioner’s job is going to be like. The first commissioner was appointed in 2023 to Poland by the Prime Minister. We are now considering several candidates and the appointments will be made soon. We have a big list that’s under consideration. We will work with the candidates, and when the time comes, we will ask the prime minister to make the appointment,” Sinanyan said.

Launching the network of commissioners is expected to increase the capacity of the Office of the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs.

The commissioners will have a “very simple” job, Sinanyan explained. “The Office of the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs has a limited staff, whereas we have a very big Diaspora. Therefore, we need people on the ground to act as the link between the community and my office,” he said.

“In the past there was a practice when our diplomats were the contact persons of the community. As a result they became community attachés instead of dealing with diplomacy. We want to avoid this and that’s why we are launching the institute of commissioners. We are not going to send anyone from Yerevan to the community, we will appoint the commissioner from within the community. They will be well-known, acceptable people for the community.”

The number of commissioners in any given country will depend on the size of the local Armenian community.

Upcoming appointments are expected in several countries of Western Europe.

Interview by Anna Gziryan