Today, Minister of Environment of Armenia Hakob Simidyan met with the delegation headed by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Sweden to Armenia Patrick Svensson.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Minister Anna Mazmanyan and Head of the Department of International Cooperation Ruzanna Grigoryan.
Welcoming his colleagues, Minister Simidyan expressed gratitude for the initiative of the meeting and highly appreciated the Armenian-Swedish cooperation.
During the meeting, the RA environmental priorities, possible formats of cooperation, as well as cooperation within the framework of a new bilateral financing opportunity were discussed, taking into account Sweden's interest in the field of environment and climate change.
The Minister presented to his colleagues the progress of the implementation of reforms in the field of environmental management and noted the importance of expanding cooperation and the possibility of exchanging experience in areas where Sweden has successful experience.
Deputy Minister Anna Mazmanyan briefly touched upon the programs implemented by the Ministry of Environment, particularly touching upon the programs that have already started in the field of forest protection and forest restoration, and asked Mr. Svensson to organize an exchange of experience in this area.
The Deputy Minister also spoke about the problems of the mining industry, solid waste and water resources management.
During the meeting, the sides touched upon the activities of the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) in the field of environment and climate change in Armenia.
Sweden pays special attention to the improvement of waste management in Armenia, stating the absence of a universal recycling system.
In order to reduce the country's energy dependence on nuclear energy, SIDA supports a number of energy-saving programs implemented through the E5P Foundation (Eastern European Partnership for Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection).
Programs are also being implemented to improve waste management and energy-efficient urban lighting. A program for the introduction of environmentally friendly buses has also been launched in Yerevan.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Sweden Patrick Svensson, on behalf of the Prime Minister of Sweden and the President of Kenya, conveyed to Minister Hakob Simidyan an invitation to participate in the large-scale event "Stockholm +50" on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first UN Conference on the Environment.
At the end of the meeting, the parties confirmed their readiness and commitment to deepen cooperation in mutually agreed areas.