YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. Chair of the Armenian Parliamentary Standing Committee on Territorial Administration, Local Self-Government, Agriculture and Environment Varazdat Karapetyan on May 6 met with the delegation led by Vice President of the Senate of the Czech Parliament Milan Štěch. The delegation members are mainly the members of the Standing Commission on Rural Development, the Parliament of Armenia told Armenpress.

Welcoming the guests Varazdat Karapetyan expressed confidence that the mutual visits would further strengthen the friendly relations existing between the two countries. He touched upon the Velvet revolution happened in Armenia in 2018 and noticed that years ago the Czech Republic had passed through such revolution, established effective experience of governance, and its study could be positive for Armenia.

The Vice President of the Senate of the Czech Parliament Milan Štěch has informed that the goal of the Standing Commission on Rural Development is the provision of the equal development of the big and small cities and communities.

The sides discussed the issues of the development and enlargement of the communities, the territorial administration, the environment and agriculture, presented to each other the directions of the Committees' works, the problems existing in the spheres and actions aimed their solution.

The Chairperson and the members of the Standing Commission on Rural Development of the Czech Senate has presented the programs being implemented for the development of small cities and communities, noting the Czech Republic 10,5 mln population has 6300 local self-government bodies, and the enlargement of the communities would also be effective. According to the guests, there is a problem, and however there is no enlargement process of the communities on the Czech agenda today.

Varazdat Karapetyan presented to his Czech colleagues the changes being designed in the sphere of local self-government, touched upon the enlargement process of the communities, noting that its goal is the provision of the regions' development.

The Committee Chair also talked about the problems existing in the spheres of agriculture and environment and evaluated the engagement of the international best experience for its settlement.

He has underlined that one of the objectives of our country is the production of the ecologically clean food products and its export. Besides the clean food Armenia is concerned about regulating the environmental problems, where the mining industry and the preservation of Lake Sevan occupy great place.

The Armenian and the Czech colleagues considered necessary the debate of the multi-layer problems in the future, too.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan