The Government of Georgia plans to establish a grant program to finance, from the state budget, Georgian non-governmental organizations that have voluntarily registered in the Register of Agents created under the Russian law.
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Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze stated at today's briefing that more than 450 organizations have applied to the Ministry of Justice for registration.
"I would like to thank each of these organizations for their responsibility towards civil society. This proves that receiving foreign funding does not automatically equate to pursuing the negative interests of a foreign power. Those with nothing to hide do not fear transparency. It is only logical that non-governmental organizations operating with foreign funding, but not attempting to create a political agenda in Georgia, not participating in revolutionary plans, not undermining the country's religious identity, not engaging in LGBT propaganda, and not creating artificial obstacles to the construction of strategic economic facilities, are not deterred by registration," Kobakhidze said.
According to the Prime Minister, the registration process took place "amidst active pressure and blackmail." While he did not provide specific examples, he accused both non-governmental and "certain" donor organizations of issuing threats and engaging in blackmail.
"Many non-governmental organizations were threatened by certain foreign donors with termination of funding if they registered with the Ministry of Justice of Georgia.
In light of this, and based on the interests of the country, we have decided to establish a grant program for Georgian non-governmental organizations, which will be fully funded by the state budget, financed by Georgian taxpayers.
The necessary institutional and financial frameworks for the smooth operation of this grant fund will be prepared in the next two months, with the first grant projects being financed starting in January 2025.
Detailed information about the grant program will be shared with you in the near future. Grant projects will be financed to fulfill tasks aligned with the interests of the Georgian people. These tasks include strengthening democratic institutions, fighting corruption, countering hybrid threats, supporting people with disabilities, protecting the environment, and safeguarding the rights and interests of ethnic and religious minorities, among others.
"Non-governmental organizations that do good work and serve the interests of the Georgian people will receive one or two times more funding from the state budget than they previously received from foreign donors," the Prime Minister stated.
He also emphasized that every lari given and spent within the framework of the grant program will be transparent to the public:
"Accordingly, the public will have the opportunity to continuously monitor how the activities of these non-governmental organizations align with the national interests of Georgia. In advance, we encourage all non-governmental organizations that wish to become agents of influence for the Georgian people and promote the national interests of Georgia to actively participate in the contests announced under this grant program.
Organizations that have not registered should not participate in this initiative. This initiative is intended for non-governmental organizations that have operated, and will continue to operate, in line with the national interests of Georgia. It is for organizations that respect the law and the rule of law in Georgia. This is our objective," said Irakli Kobakhidze.
The deadline for voluntary registration of non-governmental and media organizations, which received more than 20% of their income from abroad, in the special register created under the Russian law on so-called "foreign agents," expired on September 2. As of September 3, the Financial Monitoring Department of the Public Registry has the authority to audit and fine any organizations that refused to register. According to the latest data from the Ministry of Justice, 476 organizations voluntarily registered as "carrying the interests of a foreign power," representing about 1.5% of the total number.
