Academic conference on autism in Armenia.

On Monday, on the occasion of the World Autism Awareness Day, Armenia’s Ministry of Education and Science held an academic conference.

The participants discussed problems of autistic children.

Armenian Minister of Education and Science Armen Ashotyan noted that availability of information has been a priority since 2008.

“The number of autistic children is rapidly increasing in Armenia as well. It is no coincidence that, over the past months, with the sponsorship of the Armenian president’s wife Rita Sargsyan, we have held a series of consultations to specify our further steps,” the minister said.

At its last meeting, the Armenian government approved a draft project of establishing a national autism foundation.

The government has allotted an area, as well as funds, for the center. “All the organizations dealing with autistic children’s health problems will hold their meetings there,” Minister Ashotyan said.

Jemma Baghdasaryan, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, stressed the importance of being well-informed of autistic children’s health problems for elaborating relevant projects.

“The rights to education and family life are most important for the children. We must spare no efforts for the children not to wait for long,” she said.

A UNICEF representative at the meeting said that autistic children’s problems are in the limelight of the United Nations.

UNICEF is establishing cooperation with different organizations. The UNICEF representative is impressed by the protection of disabled children in Armenia.