On 28 July, students of 9th stream of the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders, the 1st anti-corruption professional educational initiative operating in the Republic of Armenia, within the framework of the master classes and practical skills development phase of the school met with the representatives of the Governing Board of the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia

Movses Aristakesyan greeted the students first and presented the history of the formation of the Coalition. “On 28 November, 2014, 60 civil society organizations from regions and the city of Yerevan accepted the declaration on the establishment of the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition, by which the Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia of civil society organizations of Armenia was founded.”

He noted that in 2018-19, the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia was actively involved in the Anti-Corruption Strategy and its implementation in 2019-2022, in the development of the action plan and public discussion, organized the international, government and civil society expert forum under the title “RA Anti-Corruption Strategy under International Experience”, professional and awareness events in Yerevan and RA marzes, together with the main actors of the field, international and local, and also presented proposals, almost 90 percent of which have been included in the strategy and action plan for its implementation.

It should also be noted that the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia jointly with the Armenian Lawyers’ Association has launched and is operating the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders,

Then, Arkady Sahakyan spoke to the participants about corruption and its destructive nature. He congratulated the students for enrolling in school and showing initiative. “Do not give up, work, study. Every next generation should have greater intolerance towards corruption phenomena..

Hakob Avagyan, the chairman of the Governing Board of CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia, spoke about building a dialogue with various state bodies, as well as doing effective work to solve each problem.

Taking into account the fact that Hakob Avagyan previously also held the position of the Head of the Health and Labor Inspection Authority, the latter presented the state apparatus from the inside.

Notably, the training in the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders will be organized in the following phases:

1. ONLINE TRAINING PHASE, during which the students will pass a basic anti-corruption course consisting of 25 topics through the school’s online anti-corruption training platform. Those students who have completed all the knowledge test questionnaires and received the appropriate points for completing the online training will be considered completed the online training phase.
2. MASTER CLASS AND PRACTICAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PHASE, during which students who have successfully completed the advanced stage of school will be divided into groups and each group will conduct a study, monitoring or investigation on one of the in-depth anti-corruption topics. During this phase, the work will be organized in the form of group meetings, discussions, and meetings with representatives of the sectors and other relevant bodies and organizations. Attendees will learn a range of innovative tools and gain related skills. At this stage, mentoring for groups is planned.
3. PUBLIC AWARENESS PHASE, during which students who have successfully completed the practical skills development phase of the school will have the opportunity to disseminate their anti-corruption knowledge among young people through public awareness seminars.
4. ADVANCED TRAINING PHASE, during which the best 15-20 participants who have achieved high results in the online training phase of the school, successfully completed the in-depth interview phase and are selected, will participate in the outreach (out of Yerevan) in-depth anti-corruption training. The in-depth training phase of the school will consist of the modules: “Anti-Corruption Advanced Training” and “Pillars of National Identity”.
5. FINAL PHASE, during which the students, who have successfully completed the practical skills development and public awareness stages of the school, will present their research and public awareness results to the reputable jury and the public.

Students who have passed and successfully graduated from all five phases of the School will be awarded GRADUATION CERTIFICATES of Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders.

The Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders was founded by Karen Zadoyan, the President of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association, a member of the Anti-Corruption Policy Council. “The Armenian Lawyers’ Association” NGO is organizing the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders in cooperation with the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia.

The information partner of the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders is Iravaban.net,  independent professional news website.