eIn May, a project progress review of the Chamber and Association Partnership between the Bildungswerk der Wirtschaft Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Armenian Business and Education Association (BEA) took place in Armenia. The joint project has been running for around two and a half years. The review focused on how the association has developed during this period and what impact the project has achieved in Armenia so far.
The aim of the project is to strengthen BEA as a bridge between education and business and to increase its public visibility in this role. In addition, the project seeks to promote women’s economic participation and to develop practice-oriented educational programmes for different target groups.
The review made it clear that BEA has taken important development steps over the past two and a half years. While the association had only two permanent staff members at the beginning of the project, four people now work for BEA on a permanent basis. The association’s public visibility has also improved noticeably. BEA is now represented in various working groups of the Armenian Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Education and is also invited to expert meetings organised by other associations. Its expertise is recognised and valued in these forums.
A similar development can be observed in the area of services. Discussions with women entrepreneurs showed that the association’s seminars and workshops are perceived as innovative, up to date and easy to understand. One statement by an entrepreneur from the design sector was particularly striking. She explained that before participating in BEA’s training courses, she had often thought she was “too stupid” for certain training courses. It was only through BEA’s workshops that she realised that it wasn’t her who was the problem; rather, many training contents offered by other providers had been too complicated and not sufficiently practice-oriented.
Another focus of BEA’s work is the promotion of entrepreneurial skills at general education schools and vocational schools. BEA therefore supports the establishment of student companies in many regions of Armenia. In these student companies, pupils develop their own business ideas, plan business processes and learn how to calculate costs realistically. It was particularly encouraging to see that two former vocational school students who had previously been involved in a student company have since taken the step into self-employment. BEA continues to support them as entrepreneurs through a mentoring programme.
The positive results provide a good basis for applying for a second project phase from November 2026 onwards. The Business Membership Organisation Partnership (KVP) is financed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) as part of Partners in Transformation.
