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Georgia declares state of emergency and halts almost all flights
On March 21, President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili officially declared a state of emergency for 30 days to allow the government to pursue required measures to fight the impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the country.
Georgia has also decided to halt flights to and from its airports, with very limited exceptions.
"Flights will be [almost] completely halted from today. Only Georgian Airlines will operate certain flights in coordination with the government," Prime Minister's Advisor Irakli Chikovani said on March 21.
2.2 EU announces financial support for six European Partnership nations in fight against pandemic
The European Commission said on March 30 that it has reallocated more than €140mn ($154mn) to assist Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine in their fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
"Existing instruments" with a value of up to €700mn would also be redirected to help the six countries of the EU's Eastern Partnership programme mitigate socioeconomic impacts of the crisis, it added.
"These are very difficult times not only for the EU, but for our partner countries as well," Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi stated.
The EU said it was "responding both to the immediate needs of the health systems, as well as longer term needs to the most vulnerable groups in society and small and medium-sized enterprises."
The supply of medical devices and personal protective equipment, including ventilators, laboratory kits, masks, and goggles, with a worth of €30mn would be supported to the benefit of the countries’ health systems in the weeks ahead, the commission added.
Other support to be financed with the funds is to go into the training of medical and laboratory staff and awareness-raising measures focused on the countries’ populations.
The redirected funds worth €700mn euros will be mainly utilised to deliver liquidity in the six countries. That would include via "working capital, trade finance, or moratoria on debt service" and helping small and medium sized businesses obtain credit after the health and economic crisis, the commission said.
7 GEORGIA Country Report April 2020 www.intellinews.com
