The Committee, proceeding with the offsite meetings in the regions of Georgia, convened another session in Zemo Adjara, Keda Municipality, where, together with the representatives of the local authorities, MPs got acquainted with the ongoing infrastructure projects and outlined activities.

At the beginning of the session, the Chairman of the Committee, Sozar Subari addressed the participants - "It is important to discuss and hear the issues for which the Committee has held an offsite sitting in Keda. A lot of work has been undertaken, but there is still a lot to be done and during the meeting, we will hear several interesting questions from the local authorities and discuss together to overcome the existing challenges. Important projects are underway in the region, such as gasification of mountainous Adjara, the infrastructure of water systems and sewers, but there are still certain projects to be implemented, including the Khulo-Zarzma road”.

The Chairman of the Committee hailed the presence of the opposition MPs at the sitting and noted that no matter how heated the debate will be, he is sure that the common issues will be agreed upon with the opposition and deliberations will be held on non-political issues - "Of course, the Parliament is a place for political debates and the Committee cannot be an exception, but I prefer to concentrate more on specific topics in the Committee. For me, this is a place where we need to work together to strengthen regions and get the right legislation adopted. We all stand on one side for Georgia, there will be some political differences and this is reasonable”.

After the approval of the agenda, the member of the Committee, Beka Davituliani, introduced the Bill on Spatial Planning, Architectural and Construction Activity Code.

According to the rapporteur, the holders of construction permit for individual houses are exempted from the commitment to submitting the relevant documentation on the completion of certain stages of construction.

In addition, holders of the construction permit of the building, whose design documentation stipulates the completion of the construction stages and submission of the relevant protocol within the specified period, are exempted from the liability for non-submission of the stage protocol and payment of fines/penalties unpaid as of January 1, 2022.

Giorgi Vashadze, an opposition member of the Committee, dwelt on the amendments, noting that it was an interesting document, but for some reason he could not get acquainted with it in detail and would refrain from approving it for the first reading.

According to him, he is ready to be actively involved in the discussion of the Bill for the second reading.

The Chairman of Adjara AR Government, Tornike Rizhvadze, spoke in detail about the ongoing large-scale projects in various directions.

According to him, development of the so-called Dream City is being actively carried out in Adjara and a complex is being built on the territory, where decent living conditions will be created for the local population.

"Sports infrastructure is actively developing in Adjara. The construction of the Batumi stadium has been completed, whereas the construction of the Batumi sports complex, which is designed for 3400 spectators, is at the final stage. The construction of a weight training center in Chakvi has been also launched. A plan for the development of sports infrastructure in the municipalities has been developed, which is reflected in the 2021 State Budget.

The gasification project in highland Adjara is in an active phase and 15,200 customers will be gasified. The project of water supply and sewerage of Adjara towns and villages is underway, which will benefit up to 6000 families with the modern water system.

The construction of the first modern waste management standard facility in Adjara is at the final stage as well.

With the implementation of this project, the problem that has existed for years in Adjara will be solved, the Batumi open landfill will be closed and a modern waste management facility will start functioning.

A technical-economic document for the development of the areas adjacent to the resort Goderdzi was prepared.

Currently, 27 investment projects are underway at the resort with a total investment cost of about 170 mln GEL. The initial stage of the rehabilitation of the Green Lake has been completed and the implementation of the second stage is about to start", - T. Rizhvadze stated.

The Deputy Chair of the Committee, Eka Sepashvili introduced the information on the state of implementation of the Code of Local Self-Government and Law on the Development of Highland Regions.

The MP hailed the involvement of the opposition in the sittings of the Committee and announced the establishment of a thematic inquiry group on the issues of citizen involvement in the activities of the municipalities.

According to her, it is essential that the existing record in the Code on Citizen Involvement is not left as a single record and appropriate measures are taken for its implementation.

E. Sepashvili called on the local authorities to be actively involved in the work process and expressed hope for bilateral, fruitful cooperation.

The sitting resumed with the introduction of information by the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara and the Mayors and Chairs of the City Assemblies.

According to the Chairman of the Supreme Council, David Gabaidze, taking into account the needs in the region, the Supreme Council actively cooperates with the Parliament and develops a number of legislative initiatives.

According to him, in order to ensure these goals, 8 new initiatives will be sent to the legislature in the near future, which serve the issues of the Adjara region.

The Majority MP of Highland Adjara, Anzor Bolkvadze expanded on the ongoing infrastructure projects in the region and noted that despite the pandemic, not a single project in the region has been suspended.

At the sitting, the MPs heard the information by the Deputy Chairman of the Roads Department, Giorgi Tsibadze, regarding the 10 ongoing projects in the Adjara, of which special attention was paid to the construction of Khulo-Zarzma road.

The reports and information were introduced by the Head of the Adjara Roads Department, Director of the Alliance of Adjara Water JSC, First Deputy Minister of Health of Adjara and the Head of the Department of Spatial Planning and Urban Development.

At the end of the meeting, the results of the meeting were summarized by the Chairman of the Committee, S. Subari - "We held a very engaging offsite meeting in the mountainous region of Adjara, where we heard about the current situation, existing problems, and challenges. There are areas, where serious improvement is observed, for example, the gasification of mountainous Adjara is a unique program that should reach virtually every village. Batumi is also being connected to Akhaltsikhe, which is an alternative strategic highway. We should also note the 4-year large-scale water and sewage project throughout Adjara, as a result of which municipal centers and a number of villages will benefit from a 24-hour water supply. There are projects that have been delayed, however, the process has started in this regard and we are anticipating the results. It was good that the opposition took part in the Committee meeting for the first time today and it should be noted that many of their remarks and proposals were quite constructive. I hope this constructive attitude will continue not only during the Committee sittings, but also during the entire legislative activity”.