E+NEO Armenia monitoring visit to E+BOOST project

On December 8, the National Erasmus+ Office (NEO) in Armenia carried out a monitoring visit for the Erasmus+ “Boosting Strategy and Marketing for Internationalization of Armenian Universities” (BOOST) project hosted by the project coordinator, the Khachatur Abovyan Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU).

The purpose of the monitoring  session was to ensure the project was being implemented in general conformance with the project workplan. Following a separate meeting with the Coordinator Institution’s team – Vice Rector Ara Yeremyan, Head of International Cooperation Unit Kristina Tsaturyan – the Coordinator of NEO, Lana Karlova, and Program Officer, Edith Soghomonian, conducted the monitoring meeting with representatives of the project partners including ASPU, the American University of Armenia (AUA), the Komitas State Conservatory, and the M. Nalbandyan Shirak Pedagogical University. The discussion focused on  project management, administrative procedures and financial execution, as well as progress in activities with European partners. Also considered were activities to be carried out during the project’s lifetime.

ASPU presented the ongoing activities, informed about the team’s recent meetings at the Ministry of Education and Science,  and outlined the next steps for achieving the project goals. Gayane Makaryan from AUA presented an update on the dissemination strategy of the project and other partners commented on the work being done in their institutions. The meeting addressed both the positive achievements, including the exchange of best practices during the June visit to KTH, work on the draft of the national strategy on internationalization, as well as the challenges, including broader involvement of community members at institutions and capitalizing on the achievements of the HARMONY and PICASA projects. The monitoring visit provided a venue for further clarifications related to financial reporting and management.

The NEO staff concluded the meeting with a number of recommendations aimed at fostering cooperation and to tune common understanding on the project objectives among stakeholders both within and beyond the project scope.