The Economic Forum kicked off today in Yerevan within the frameworks of the 17th Summit of the International Organization of La Francophonie.

President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian, Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie Michaëlle Jean and the artificially intelligent social robot Sophia gave the opening speeches of the ceremony.

During the forum, Business Armenia CEO Armen Avak Avakian presented the vision of global economic development and Armenia’s investment climate to business people from around 50 countries.

“Companies like Google and Apple drive the innovation these days. And it happens mainly because of potential of the immigrants. If we consider the USA and China as the emigration promoters, it’s clear that the emigration itself positively affects innovation. The number of registered patents in those countries has substantially increased in recent years. Armenia too is a good example of this. As the “Nation of Innovation”, Armenians are the creators of significant technological revolutions in the world,” said Armen Avakian.

After the opening ceremony and the key reports, the forum continued into 3 thematic sessions. Distinguished experts from around the world presented their vision on the following topics: “The 4th Industrial Revolution and the Future of Labor”; “Stability in the Context of Development: From The Traditional to Modern Economy” and “The Perspectives and Challenges of International Trade Relations”.

The forum was organized with support from Yandex.Taxi, Coca-Cola Hellenic Armenia, ARARAT, all.me, and Armenia Wine companies.