Prepared by Messenger Staff
IDPs to Be Offered GEL 10,000 Per Person Instead of Housing
The Georgian Dream government will offer internally displaced families GEL 10,000 per family member as an alternative to state-provided housing, Irakli Kobakhidze announced. Participation will be voluntary, and the programme will run alongside existing housing initiatives.
Families that have not previously received housing or monetary compensation will be eligible to apply through the relevant agency of the Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labour, Health and Social Affairs. Applications will be processed in the order they are submitted.
GEL 58 million will be allocated for the programme this year, with funding expected to increase in the coming years. Families that do not opt for compensation will remain eligible for housing through ongoing construction projects and the "House in the Village" programme.
Kobakhidze said the government had increased funding for IDP support tenfold since 2012, providing more than 45,000 families with new housing. Under the "House in the Village" programme, up to 2,000 families have purchased homes in rural areas with state support this year. A further 2,600 families are expected to receive apartments once current construction projects are completed.
Despite these efforts, many displaced families remain without permanent housing. Kobakhidze said resolving the issue through construction alone could take at least another 10 years, prompting the government to introduce monetary compensation as an additional option.
Kallas Says EU to Reassess Georgia Policy in January
The European Union's current approach to Georgia is neither putting enough pressure on the government to change course nor allowing the bloc to fully advance its strategic interests, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said after a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
"Regarding Georgia, democratic backsliding is worsening, more and more opposition parties are facing the prospect of being banned, and the 'foreign agents law' is suffocating civil society," Kallas said at a press conference.
She accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of undermining the country's European prospects, saying Georgian citizens wanted a European future.
"The Georgian people want a European future, but the Georgian Dream is systematically depriving them of it," she said.
Kallas said the EU's current policy was failing to achieve its intended goals and confirmed that the bloc would revisit its approach to Georgia in January.
"Our current approach neither creates sufficient pressure for change nor allows us to fully pursue our European strategic interests. We will return to this issue in January," she said.
