The event marked the start of a so-called Twinning aimed to promote effective environmental health system and improve health-related conditions for the benefit of the population of Georgia. Funded by the European Union with a total budget of EUR 1.3 million, the project is implemented by EU Member States' national institutions and their partners in the field (Italy, UK, Poland), with the final beneficiary  - Georgia's National Center for Disease Control and Public Health (NCDC&PH) hosting the event.

Mr Davit Sergeenko, Minister of Labour, Health, and Social Affairs and Mr Akaki Jamburia, Deputy Head of the EU Assistance Coordination Department at the Office of the State Minister of Georgia on European & Euro-Atlantic Integration opened the event together with the Ambassador of Italy, Mr Antonio Enrico Bartoli and Mr Carlo Natale, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Georgia.

The project aims to strengthen the legal framework on environmental health in Georgia through harmonization with European requirements, improve environmental health management, ensure long-lasting environmental policy development and deepen inter-sectoral collaboration.

The project will run until the end of 2018 and is implemented by: National Health Institute (Istituto Superiore di Sanità) and Minoprio Foundation (Fondazione Minoprio) of Italy together with its project partner institutions, the Public Health England (PHE), and the Polish Institute of Occupational Medicine (NOFER).

Expected results of the project are:

• Revision of Georgian legal and regulatory framework in the field of environmental health in line with the provisions of relevant annexes of the Association Agreement concerning environmental health;
• Strengthening institutional capacity of the environment and health unit under the National Center for Disease Control and Public Health;
• Promoting implementation of the National Environmental Health Action Plan (NEHAP) in line with the roadmap for EU approximation in the environmental and climate action fields;
• Strengthening capacities of the existing human resources in the field of environmental health, including management and decision makers, along with operationalization of an effective environmental health management system in compliance with EU best practices.

Background information:

This Twinning is part of wider EU sector support to Georgia aiming to help Georgia harmonize its environmental health systems with EU rules. Twinning is a European Union initiative, which brings together public sector expertise from EU Member States and beneficiary countries with the aim of enhancing co-operative activities.

For more information please contact:

Mr Giorgio Arduino

Resident Twinning Adviser, Twinning Office NCDC, e-mail: info.genvhe@gmail.com;

cell phone: +995 599 44 06 82

Ms Nana Gabriadze

Resident Twinning Adviser Counterpart, NCDC, e-mail: gabriadzenana79@gmail.com;

cell phone: +995 595 45 54 97

Mr Mikolaj Bekasiak

Communications Manager, EU Delegation to Georgia: Mikolaj-Swietopelek.BEKASIAK@eeas.europa.eu