YEREVAN. On November 13-14, 2025, Armenia’s leading GIS company Geovibe, the global GIS leader Esri, and Data+ International (Esri CIS Official Distributor) held the first-ever GIS Technology Days in Armenia, bringing together government officials, experts, practitioners, educators, and youth from across Armenia, the Middle East, Central Asia, and the wider region. Over two days of high-level presentations and hands-on workshops, the event highlighted how Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are transforming governance, industry, education, and community development positioning Armenia as an emerging regional center of geospatial innovation.
Day 1: A Regional Platform for Global Geospatial Innovation
The event opened with remarks by Gevorg Mantashyan, First Deputy Minister of the High-Tech Industry of the Republic of Armenia, who emphasized the value of strong professional communities and youth-centered innovation platforms in advancing Armenia’s digital transformation agenda.
Mohamed Issa, Esri Regional Manager for Western Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, delivered an inspiring keynote on the future of GIS and global innovation trends, setting the tone for a program rich in expertise, vision, and practical case studies.
The agenda featured a wide range of thematic presentations across three sessions, providing a comprehensive overview of GIS applications:
- GIS for Digital Transformation – Mohamed Issa, Esri
- GIS for Urban Transformation: Yerevan City GIS Digital Transformation (SAG Award Winner) – Sargis Manukyan, Yerevan Municipality
- COAF GIS Digital Transformation & Youth Empowerment – Tsovinar Soghomonyan and COAF SMART Center Lori GIS students
- Geospatial Analysis & Data Science at Al-Farabi University – Omirzhan Taukebayev
- Remote Sensing Meets GeoAI: Unlocking New Opportunities – Konstantin Nagornyuk, Data+ International
- Transforming Agriculture with Geospatial Intelligence – Vardan Urutyan, Armenian Institute for Digital Agriculture
- Beyond Maps: Building Digital Twins Across Industries – Alexander Leonov, Data+ International
- The Business Case for GIS: Mining, Agriculture, Utilities, Roads, Environment – Evgeniya Gusakova, Data+ International
- Geovibe Advancing Geospatial Technologies in Armenia – Lilit Margaryan, Geovibe
Together, these sessions offered participants a panoramic view of how GIS is being applied globally and locally to fuel innovation, sustainability, and data-driven decision-making.
A Landmark Moment:: COAF SMART Center Students Present at Marriott
The moment everyone will remember is COAF SMART Center Lori school-age pupil at Marriott- presenting real GIS solutions to real issues their communities face on a day-to-day basis, using skills gained from their institutional GIS classes they are taking at the Center: The GIS course is the result of the flagship collaboration between COAF and Geovibe to teach institutional GIS at the COAF SMART Center Lori as a mindset and a highly demanded profession of today and the future.
Standing alongside global GIS leaders, the students showcased:
- Professional GIS analyses developed through COAF’s GIS curriculum
- How rural Armenian youth are mastering world-class geospatial tools and applying GIS to solve the real-life issues of their own communities
- The power of education in shaping the next generation of GIS professionals.
Their presentation resonated deeply with participants, symbolizing how Armenia is not only adopting advanced technologies but also cultivating the talent that will drive the field forward.
Knowledge Sharing and Innovation Across Sectors
Technical experts from Esri and Data+ International led deep-dive sessions on global industry trends, including GeoAI, remote sensing, digital twins, and advanced geospatial analytics.
Geovibe, as a leading GIS innovator in Armenia and a 2025 Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award co-recipient with Yerevan Municipality, presented its nationwide portfolio and its long-term vision for strengthening Armenia’s geospatial ecosystem.
Day 2: From Yerevan Stage to Lori Fields: Hands-On GIS Workshop at COAF SMART Center Lori- Bringing Global Expertise to Youth
On November 14, Esri, Geovibe, and several international experts traveled to the COAF SMART Center in Lori to deliver a hands-on training session for students and pupils.
This field-based, real-life-case workshop, integrated into COAF’s institutional GIS curriculum, amplified the educational dimension of the conference and underscored Armenia’s growing commitment to building a future-ready digital workforce.
Epilogue: A Milestone in Armenia’s Digital Transformation Journey
The first GIS Technology Days in Armenia set a new benchmark for regional collaboration, cross-sector knowledge exchange, and youth-centered innovation.
The event demonstrated that Armenia’s geospatial transformation touches every dimension of national development:
- Government and public services
- Urban development and smart cities
- Agriculture, mining, and environmental systems
- Academia and scientific research
- Non-profit development and community empowerment
- Youth education and capacity building.
Situated at the intersection of global expertise and local innovation, Armenia is rapidly emerging as a dynamic regional hub for geospatial excellence.
About Geovibe
Geovibe is Armenia’s premier Geographic Information Systems (GIS) company and an Esri Partner Network Gold member. Specializing in cutting-edge geospatial solutions, Geovibe empowers organizations across sectors to harness location intelligence for strategic planning, operational efficiency, and impactful decision-making. Geovibe is inspired by Dr. Garo Armen, a global visionary, entrepreneur and philanthropist, the Founder of COAF, Children of Armenia Fund.
About Esri
Esri is the global market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), offering the most powerful mapping and spatial analytics technology available. Founded in 1969, Esri’s software is used by over 650,000 organizations worldwide, across governments, industry, academia, not-for-profit and many other areas to drive innovation and improve outcomes across all sectors of life.