Mikheil Chkhenkeli spoke about the development of science and future plans in this direction during his speech in Parliament within the "Minister's Hour" format
Mikheil Chkheidze: “Supporting science is one of our utmost priorities. The Rustaveli National Science Foundation announces grant competitions annually in both fundamental and applied research.
It is of paramount importance to work with foreign foundations, scientific research centers, and organizations. Georgia is already a member of the Horizon 2020 program, which serves as a serious resource in terms of science funding, and this cooperation will continue. The subsequent phase will be active participation in Horizon Europe.
We have reached an agreement with the President of COST – the European Cooperation in Science and Technology – regarding Georgia's membership in this association. This creates a vast arena for our scientists and researchers both in terms of funding and scientific-research cooperation with European colleagues.
With the Ministry's support, the Tbilisi Regional Centre of the Academia Europaea was opened at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. The centre will assist the Georgian scientific community in integrating closer into the European space of science, innovation, and technology, and will facilitate the country's progress towards European integration. The Tbilisi Regional Educational and Research Centre of the Academia Europaea is the fifth member of the regional centers network of the UK-based Academia Europaea.
In 2019, Georgia joined EURAXESS, the European organization for EU research and innovation. Information on the EURAXESS Georgia portal will be available in Georgian, English, and Abkhazian. Furthermore, Abkhaz scientists will be able to participate in international projects exclusively under the flag of Georgia;
Georgia has become a member of EUROSCIENCE, the European Association for the Advancement of Science and Technology. Consequently, Georgia will participate in the formulation of European science policy and protect the interests of Georgian science in the European space.
In 2019, through the cooperation of the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia and the World Bank, a new applied research grant program, CARYS, was announced, aimed at implementing joint applied research with the engagement of young scientists;
In 2019, the National Science Foundation administered new competitions: the research program "Georgian Studies in European Universities" and a grant competition aimed at supporting scientific research in the occupied and border regions of Georgia;“
