First road, now airport – PM promises to develop mountain region of Tusheti

Two months after promising to build a new road to Tusheti, Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili now suggests building an air strip in the inaccessible region in the northeast of the country.

It’s an attractive tourist destination, but difficult to access. Only one road leads there today, and it is often described as ‘dangerous’.

In August, the PM said a tender had been announced for building a new road announced to Tusheti.

“This will be a modern road of European standards,” he said then.

On Thursday, the PM suggested a plan to build an aerodrome in the same region. It will be located in the village Omalo, describing the use of domestic aviation as one of the government’s top priorities, aimed at creating development in a country where funding has gone into building new high speed motorways while the villages have stagnated with roads deteriorating.

“We aim to have as many small airports in Georgia as possible in order to make travel easier for our citizens and tourists,” he said, adding that it will create more jobs as well.

He characterized Tusheti as the ‘pearl’ of Georgia with a particular cultural heritage which should be developed as a tourist destination.

A new airport is also being built in Ambrolauri, a town in Racha, another mountainous region.
(DF watch)