PM Reviews the Next Stage of Reopening the Economy

In line with information shared by the National Centre for Disease Control and Public Health (NCDC), 3 new cases of infection have been detected in the country today and all of them originate from the quarantine zones. The spread of virus is effectively under control and it is evidenced by several facts: new cases of infection predominantly originate from quarantine zones, which confirms that it was a prudent decision to introduce quarantine in relevant locations of the country; new cases of infection stem solely from already known clusters; risk-related groups are international transportation, which are actively scrutinized by the Task Force of the Inter-Agency Coordination Council of the Government of Georgia and control is tightened. It also means that spread of the infectious pandemic is under control, which resulted from the joint effort of us and the general public. A new task is faced in terms of a much quicker recovery of the economy. You may well be aware that we proposed a Plan for Economic Recovery of Georgia, which included concrete measures. Today we can state as a matter fact that we are positioned well to slightly accelerate the implementation of this plan, noted Giorgi Gakharia, Prime Minister of Georgia at the meeting of the Inter-Agency Coordination Council of the Government of Georgia today.

The head of the government noted that the intention of acceleration is based on the control gained over the spread of the virus and Seroprevalence Study produced by the NCDC, which once again evidences that the scale of domestic spread is small and risks are declining at the same time.

“Acceleration is made possible by a number of listed reasons and control gained over the spread of the virus. Today NCDC submitted findings of its Seroprevalence Study, which once again evidence that scale of domestic spread is rather small and risks are declining. Hence, irrespective of the fact that virus has not yet been defeated, it remains with us and we should essentially adhere to basic safety norms. We took a decision on further easing the existing restrictions by considering the economic and social interests of our citizens” he added.

The PM also spoke about lifting the restrictive measures, which will happen gradually in the country.

“Municipal transport of all types, including the underground, will resume operation from May 29 and it will happen only by complying with concrete rules. Face masks remain to be an essential routine accessory and organizations managing the municipal transport or private transportation business owners will bear responsibility over the passenger compliance.

"Shops with direct street access, including shopping malls, roofed and open-air markets of all types and restaurants with open spaces will resume operation from Monday, June 1.

"Restaurant services of all types will resume operation from next Monday, June 8. It means that restaurants will be able to operate and carry on business.

"Also, hotels will resume operation from June 8. However, only those hotels that have been specifically tested by the respective agencies of the Ministry of Health of Georgia (MOH) and have the permission of a specific type. Inter-city transportation will also resume operation” stated the Prime Minister of Georgia.

He emphasized that these decisions are made by considering the social and economic interests of citizens. Though, it is essential to adhere to the basic rules and recommendations to avoid the risk of further spread.

“These steps are primarily taken by considering the social and economic interests of our citizens. However, we should all remember that it is essential to maintain the rate of spread observed today and wear face masks at every place of public gathering. We should all wear face masks! These decisions, along with more detailed norms and concrete obligations will be released by the Government Administration of Georgia in the nearest future, today. These decisions are made possible by the plan developed at the MOH and NCDC, which has been submitted and based on the increased volume of testing. I am referring to the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Test regarded as a gold standard. Today we can clearly visualize how a whole range of labs will operate in the coming months till the expected second wave in autumn to ensure control over the infectious spread in the country. I wish to underline here that these steps are made by considering the best and essential interests of our citizens for the economic development of our country, which manifests itself in the re-opening of the domestic tourism sector from June 15, while international visitors will get admitted from July 1. All of these are critically important for the quick resumption of our economy, however, we should fully understand that responsibility is shared between the government, businesses and citizens. As we have been doing jointly so far, civil consciousness should continue to be used with the greatest responsibility to continue fight against the virus at both fronts – healthcare and economic development,” he concluded.