At a joint sitting of the EU Integration, and the Regional Policy and Self-Government Committees, MPs heard a report from the Regional Development Ministry on the state of implementation of the Association Agreement commitments.

The report was introduced by the Deputy Regional Development Minister, Zurab Iashvili.

The Deputy Minister spoke about Georgia’s Association Agreement commitments, the Association Agenda, and EU legislation, as well as the current status of their implementation.

During the presentation, the speaker addressed issues related to the Integrated Territorial Development Programme.

While discussing the policy and strategy for the development of mountainous settlements, the Deputy Minister noted that Georgia has taken important steps, including the approval of the 2024–2030 Strategy for the Development of Mountainous Settlements and the reorganization of the Ministry aimed at increasing governance efficiency.

Zurab Iashvili also focused on the implementation in Georgia of the EU’s Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) methodology. He further discussed the introduction of the EU platform known as Smart Specialisation (S3), which is considered one of the necessary frameworks for EU accession.

The sitting emphasized the importance of regional policy as a key mechanism for reducing economic disparities between regions.

Particular attention was given to strengthening local self-government, advancing the decentralization process, and increasing the economic independence of municipalities.