Page 9 - GEORptAug21

Tbilisi mayor Kaladze to seek reelection
Several opposition MPs, MEPs and international partners have stated that the UNM’s refusal to join the agreement gave a reason to the ruling party to annul its signature to the document.
Now Melia maintains that the ruling party will have to accept the holding of repeat parliamentary elections if they receive less than 43% of votes. However, the ruling party said after the withdrawal from the agreement that it may or may not accept the holding of a repeat parliamentary poll.
The UNM won 34 of the 60 opposition seats claimed in the 150-member parliament in the October 2020 elections.
After the involvement of the EU, the party agreed to end its boycott of the parliament after a six-month political standoff, but would not sign the political agreement proposed by European Council President Charles Michel.
Meanwhile, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, a member of Georgia's ruling Georgian Dream party, will run for reelection in October, he announced on July 20. Kaladze is one of the most favourably viewed public figures in Georgia, and the most-liked Georgian Dream leader, according to the latest IRI-commissioned public opinion poll, from April.
2.4 Georgia receives Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Sinovac doses in July, will lift restrictions
Georgia to lift longstanding Covid restrictions, including curfew
Georgia will receive 500,000 Pfizer doses of coronavirus vaccine on July 24, the government announced. The vaccines will come from the US as part of its global Covid partner countries measures. The new batch follows the arrival of 28,000 Pfizer shots on July 14, and half a million shots each of Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines on July 2.
Lithuania is donating 15,000 AstraZeneca vaccines to Georgia, Lithuania's Health Ministry said on July 23. The donation comes in response to Georgia's request to help it deal with the coronavirus.
Georgia has received another half a million Chinese Sinovac coronavirus vaccine doses, the government announced on July 20.
In June, Estonia also said it would send 100,000 vaccine doses to the country. Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili argued that Georgia now has more vaccine shots available “than needed,” and called on the public to participate more actively in the vaccination drive.
Georgia initiated its vaccine rollout on March 15, and as of July 20, 368,179 persons have received at least a single jab, while 132,207 have been fully vaccinated. AstraZeneca, Sinopharm, Sinovac and Pfizer shots are being administered in the country.
After more than half a year, Georgia is set to lift a host of Covid restrictions, including its curfew, as the country continues its reopening. Georgia's heavily tourist-driven economy, which has been battered by the restrictions, looks set to further rebound as a result.
Georgia will lift its seven-month-long nationwide curfew starting July 1, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili announced following the June 22 Inter-Agency Coordination Council meeting. Also, wearing face masks outdoors will no
9 GEORGIA Country Report August 2021 www.intellinews.com