Private Sector to Participate in Vehicle Technical Inspection Campaign
The Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia reports that the private sector will be involved in the information campaign about the mandatory technical inspection of vehicles.
The memorandum was signed by the representatives of the Ministry, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and six large companies: Wissol Petroleum Georgia Ltd, Socar Georgia Petroleum Ltd, San Petroleum Georgia Ltd, Majid Al Futhaim Hypermarkets Georgia Ltd, JSC Goodwill and JSC Nikora Trade.
According to the Ministry, the memorandum is open and any other interested companies can join it.
An active information campaign via television, radio and social media is aimed at informing the population about the reform.
In addition, it is planned to hold informational meetings in cities and municipalities throughout Georgia, and the private sector will be involved in the process within the frames of social responsibility.
Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Akaki Saghirashvili spoke about the importance of provision of timely and correct communication with the public regarding the reform, after the parties signed the memorandum on October 5.
“We are grateful to all those who are willing to cooperate with us within the framework of the reform. We believe that in cooperation with the business and the public sector, we will achieve our goal and the reform will be successful,” the Deputy Minister stated.
Nino Chikovani, the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Georgia, also highlighted the importance of information about the technical inspection reform being delivered to the population as efficiently as possible.
“The six companies that signed the memorandum have expressed their readiness to introduce the information on technical inspection reforms within their business networks. This is a good example of social responsibility,” she noted.
Obligatory technical inspection of vehicles took effect on January 1, 2018. The first stage required trucks of over 3.5 tons and passenger cars with more than eight seats to undergo safety checks.
The second stage, launched on July 1, 2018, required all vehicles registered to state entities to undergo a mandatory check, which was followed by the third stage from October 1.
From October 1, 2018, the third stage of mandatory technical inspections of vehicles was launched in Georgia, envisaging inspection of all automobiles with 3.0 engines and above.
From January 1, 2019, the government expects to launch the final phase of the campaign and require all other vehicles to undergo mandatory testing.
Vehicles which are four years old or less will not have to undergo an inspection. Cars that are four-six years old will undergo testing once every two years and cars older than six years will have to be tested every year.
Under the Georgia-EU Association Agreement signed in 2014, Georgia is obligated to ensure all vehicles are in line with EU standards.
By Thea Morrison
Image source: Ministry of Economy