Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia

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Otar Shamugia met with the Head of the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), Erik Illes.

During the meeting, the parties addressed current projects and priority areas for future cooperation.
The Minister thanked SIDA, the Embassy of the Kingdom of Sweden, and the Government of Sweden for supporting Georgia, emphasizing collaboration in waste management and the progress made by Georgia in the mentioned area.

"Reforming waste management is a challenging and complex task. Our objective is to make this journey as painless and easy as possible. Implementing environmental reforms, on the one hand, is a part of our obligation under the EU-Georgia Association Agreement, and on the other, it is essential for our country and people. It should be mentioned that much has been done with the support of our international partners, including Sweden, and the active work of our government and parliament; however, we still face challenges, and support from donors and coordinated work is particularly important to overcome these challenges’’,  said Mr. Otar Shamugia.

According to the Head of SIDA, the Swedish side positively evaluates the efforts of Georgia and the steps taken to implement reforms toward the environmental protection area.

"Georgia has already made some progress in waste management; new rules and regulations have been adopted, and work is underway to implement international standards. Sweden is eager to share its own experience with Georgia as well as the practices of other European countries which have gone through a similar transitional stage. It should be mentioned that some of our projects are nearing completion in Georgia, and we are working on a new strategy. Accordingly, our goal is to learn more about the current needs and demands in Georgia’’, stated Eric Iles.

As mentioned, the cooperation and dialogue between the parties will continue in waste management, biodiversity, extended producer responsibility, institutional development, and other areas.

The Deputy Minister of Environmental and Agriculture, Mr. Solomon Pavliashvili, the Head of the Agency of Nuclear and Radiation Safety, Mr. Vasil Gedevanishvili, the Head of the Environmental Program of the Swedish Embassy in Georgia, Mrs. Khatuna Zaldastanishvili and the representatives of the relevant departments of the Ministry attended the meeting.