Page 24 - GEORptAug21

EIB backs three major infrastructure projects in Georgia
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is to support three infrastructure projects in Georgia as part of its $3.7bn COVID-19 Worldwide Support programme.
The first project is the construction of the Algeti-Sadakhlo road, of around 30 kilometres). It will connect a transit corridor of the E-60 Highway to the Armenian border.
The second project is Rustavi Red Bridge, connecting Georgia to Azerbaijan. It forms part of the E-60 highway and the extended Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) core network in Georgia.
Finally, EIB will finance the development of a new fibre optic network providing broadband internet access to more than 1,000 remote rural villages across the country.
Business investment, renewable energy and upgrading hospitals, schools, internet services and urban infrastructure will be accelerated by the new financing approved on March 11 by the EIB.
The European Union (EU) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe will draw on a €40mn budget in a three-year effort at supporting the deployment of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines and vaccination in the six EU Eastern Partnership countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
The project, funded by the EU and implemented by the Regional Office, will cover all phases—constituting “end-to-end” support—of COVID-19 vaccine deployment and vaccination, the two organisations said on February 11. “It will also serve as a major investment to strengthen routine immunization systems in the six countries,” they said in an announcement.
The project amounts to the largest EU and WHO joint action ever implemented in the European Region.
Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said: “Successful vaccination requires much more than vaccine development and dissemination. This comprehensive ‘end-to-end’ initiative, generously supported by the European Union, will allow the WHO Regional Office for Europe to ensure that Eastern Partnership countries are well prepared, immunization systems are in place, and personnel are trained to deliver the precious COVID-19 vaccines to those who need them most.
“And the work does not end there. Monitoring of uptake and vaccine safety must continue as more vaccines are rolled out across populations. All of us have a responsibility to make sure that no country is left behind in this complex process. I thank the European Union for their solidarity and commitment to work with us to stop this pandemic.”
EU and WHO in
€40mn effort to assist Eastern Partnership countries with COVID-19 vaccines
24 GEORGIA Country Report August 2021 www.intellinews.com