The newly appointed mayor of Yerevan, Karen Karapetyan, decided to bring a number of innovations to the mayor’s office.

In particular, the sources at the City Hall told NEWS.am, Karapetyan told all the staff to learn English. The mayor has promised to organize free English language courses in 2011,  participation in which is mandatory for all employees of City Hall. Karen Karapetyan also jokingly threatened that they would need to pass a final exam, and those who do not pass will be dismissed.

The source also said that the prospect to learn English for free (especially during business hours) is quite inspiring for the young staff and the older staff feels that this is a way for Karapetyan to get rid of them because it will be difficult for them to learn a new language.