Arine from Beirut conducts a project management workshop for local NGOs in Vanadzor

Originally from Beirut, Lebanon, I was invited to hold a project management workshop for the local NGOs in Vanadzor, at the Jinishian Foundation. This initiative was part of the simultaneous skill transfer workshops held in four regions of Armenia on 14 and 15 September in the framework of the Together4Armenia web platform. At that time, I was working for the Armenian General Benevolent Union-AGBU Lebanon, the world largest non-profit Armenian organization, as programs coordinator.

From developing overall communications strategies and overseeing and implementing general non- profit strategies and managing projects and teams, I was happy to share with the team my expertise on successful marketing and communications strategies and to help these NGOs to achieve their growth objectives.

Achieving success in project management and in the communications world requires the ability to grasp innovative public relations strategies and effective leadership throughout campaign executions and program launches.

The feeling of giving back to the community can’t be explained by words. I was really grateful to have had the chance to share my knowledge and my proven talent for implementing and managing complex and ambitious plans. I was also an experienced “motivator” and had worked on ways of creating and maintaining relationships, which I was extremely happy to share with the Vanadzor community.

The NGO representatives were so motivated to take part in this workshop. After finishing my presentation, the participants, who came from different organizations, worked in a team and tried to develop a plan for launching a Summer Camp project in the marz. I still remember we had a lot of fun. It was indeed a rewarding experience for me. I felt fulfilled seeing the team members very pleased with the workshop, even eager to stay in contact with me after the project, which was a great achievement. 

During my stay in the region, I familiarized myself with the obstacles and challenges facing the communities in the Vanadzor region, and learned about the improvements that are being made here. I was pretty sure that there’s definitely a lot to be done to empower the communities and ensure that the sustainable development goals are achieved. However, I do believe that this depends on the participation and cooperation of public and private sectors, NGOs, the government and the diaspora experts to share their knowledge and expertise.

From what I witnessed, the 2 day workshops seemed to have helped start laying the foundations for a coordinated and coherent process to achieve these goals. This much appreciated Together4Armenia platform seems to be a strong foundation for knowledge exchange and the transfer of skills. I would very much encourage other diaspora experts to try it out!