Credible and transparent municipal data is critical as Georgia strives to improve the quality of rural life and promote balanced territorial development of its regions. Diverse statistical information from municipalities will inform targeted development programmes and will help assess the efficiency of local services and the achievements and gaps in local and regional governance.

The European Union and Denmark, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), assist the National Statistics Office, GEOSTAT, in improving municipal data collection, systematising already available statistical information, defining and collecting new statistical indicators, and making the sub-national statistics easily accessible to the public.

The results of this support were presented to the public on 13 February, with representatives from the Georgian Government, municipal authorities, civil society and the private sector attending the event.  

“The EU cares deeply about further developing the regions of Georgia to make sure that the whole population has access to opportunities and services. The foundation of this is clear and reliable data. The new GEOSTAT platform will help policy-makers and local authorities to make well-informed decisions for the people living in their regions. We are happy to celebrate its launch today,” said Colombe de Mercey, Governance and Human Capital Team Leader at the Delegation of the European Union to Georgia.

“Municipalities need reliable and transparent statistical data to assess their needs and develop responsive policies and programmes. Denmark helps improve municipal data collection as part of our broader support for decentralisation and good governance in Georgia,” said H.E. Anne Toft Sørensen, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Denmark in Georgia. 

With the EU and Denmark’s support, GEOSTAT developed a specialised webpage regions.geostat.ge integrated into its public website. The digital service offers information on 64 Georgian municipalities, tracking economic, demographic and social dynamics across 82 indicators, with 52 indicators provided by Georgia’s public agencies and the rest by GEOSTAT through statistical surveys. 

"The Regional and Municipal Statistics Portal will be available to all categories of users, enabling quick and easy access to statistical information, both at the regional and municipal levels," said Gogita Todradze, GEOSTAT Executive Director.

“UNDP welcomes cooperation with the EU and Denmark to support GEOSTAT in its vital work, respond to the national data needs, and assist Georgia to achieve its sustainable development priorities,” said Nick Beresford, UNDP Resident Representative in Georgia. 

UNDP’s assistance to Georgia’s National Statistics Office, GEOSTAT,  is supported by the EU-funded programme EU4 Integrated Territorial Development (EU4ITD) promoting balanced territorial development and improved living standards in Georgia’s regions, and the Denmark-funded project for decentralisation and good governance in Georgia.

Media contacts:

• Mariam Kavelashvili, GEOSTAT, +995 32 2367210, +995 599 337133, mkavelashvili@geostat.ge  
• Sophie Tchitchinadze, UNDP, +995 599 196907, sophie.tchitchinadze@undp.org
• Teiko Kandelaki, UNDP, +995 599 103525, tinatin.kandelaki@undp.org
• Tamar Mikadze, European Union Delegation to Georgia, +995 32 2364364, tamriko.mikadze@eeas.europa.eu