The promise and perils of Georgia’s East–West Highway project
May 2, 2024
Georgia’s East-West Highway construction project, once heralded as a symbol of progress and splendour, has been marred by controversies.
The reconstruction of Ukraine: lessons from the post-war recovery in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia
April 14, 2023
This briefing analyses the lessons learned from the post war reconstruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia and how they can be considered during Ukraine’s reconstruction.
The unexplained backtracking of the EBRD and Tbilisi City Hall: why did they keep the contract with a Russian company?
March 13, 2023
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing funding to Tbilisi City Hall to purchase metro cars for the Georgian capital’s metro system from a Russian company, Metrowagonmash. The company is part of Transmashholding, whose shareholders – Russian oligarchs Iskander Makhmudov and Andrey Bokarev – are closely linked with the Kremlin and its defence industry. Metrowagonmash’s sister company is also reportedly providing engines for Russian warships.
EBRD funds channelled to Kremlin affiliates: Why the purchase of Tbilisi metro cars from a Russian company should not proceed as planned
March 13, 2023
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is providing funding to Tbilisi City Hall to purchase metro cars for the Georgian capital’s metro system from Russian company Metrowagonmash. But Metrowagonmash is not just any Russian company.
Urban public transport reform in Tbilisi
September 29, 2022
The briefing finds that none of Tbilisi’s proposed reforms have been completed, nor are they entirely consistent with the city’s goals, including prioritising pedestrians, enhancing mobility opportunities for the city’s residents and improving air quality.
Tbilisi’s public transport woes and faltering reforms
September 28, 2022
Residents of Georgia’s capital Tbilisi have been struggling with the city’s beleaguered public transport network, air pollution, road congestion and inadequate access to schools and workplaces for years. In the past decade, Tbilisi authorities with the involvement of international financial institutions, set out to improve the situation. Today, despite the availability of funds, most of the old problems persist.
Unsolved problems of the North-South Corridor (Kvesheti-Kobi) Road Project
November 1, 2021
The North-South Corridor (Kvesheti-Kobi) Road Project is planned to be realized in Georgia. The 23-kilometre Kvesheti-Kobi Road Project is a new section of the North-South Corridor. The construction will impact the Khada Valley, also known as ‘the plac
The cracks of Shuakhevi
May 5, 2021
Water is leaking out of Shuakhevi hydropower plant’s recently reopened dam again. With three international financial institutions involved, who’s responsible for the safety of this USD 420 million project?
Saving ‘private’ Rioni: Georgia’s growing environmental protest
April 9, 2021
In just a few months, a protest against a large dam on the Rioni River has grown from a handful of people in Lechkhumi, western Georgia into a national demonstration. On the International Day of Action for Rivers, 14 March, thousands of Georgians made history with the largest environmental protest in the country’s recent past.
Georgia’s precious Khada Valley at risk due to a new road to Russia
September 18, 2020
Scientists, civil activists and the local community unite and call on Europeans to join the petition to save the exceptional biodiversity and precious cultural heritage in Khada.
