Discussing the Law on the 2014 Draft Budget of Georgia at the plenary session of the Georgian Parliament on 14 November 2013, the representative of the parliamentary minority, Giorgi Tevdoradze, stated that due to the poor government, the funding for regional projects had decreased from GEL 449 million to 250 million in the 2014 state budget; additionally, only part of the planned activities had been implemented in 2013.

FactCheck

inquired whether or not the funding for regional projects had in fact decreased from GEL 449 million to 250 million in the 2014 state budget and also verified what part of the planned projects had been completed in 2013.

According to the Draft Law on the 2014 Draft State Budget, published on the website of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia, funding for regional projects for the year 2013 comprised GEL 449.3 million while for 2014, this amount decreased to GEL 250 million. The decline was reflected in the first draft of the project and has not been changed in the final version.

The website of the Ministry of Finance also presents the nine-month state budget execution report. According to the document, the amount defined by the normative act of the Regional Projects Fund comprised GEL 376.8 million while the amount allocated equalled GEL 123.6 million.

Budget Execution Indicators of the Regional Projects Fund

Purpose of Disbursement	Amount assigned by the Normative Act (GEL million)	Allocated Amount (GEL million)
Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure	75,1	51,9
Ministry of Education and Science	1,3	1,3
Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Accommodation and Refugees	2,0	0,8
Ministry of Energy	1,7	1,7
Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs	6,5	6,5
Payables of general state importance	285,8	58,6
Other	4,4	2,8
Total	376,8	123,6

In the first three quarters of 2013, the funding was decreased for various projects foreseen in the Normative Act.

Regional Projects Suffering Funding Cuts 

Purpose of Disbursement	Amount assigned by the Normative Act (GEL million)	Allocated Amount (GEL million)
Construction of Tianeti-Zaridzeebi-Zhinvali road of interstate importance in 2013-2015	10,0	7,0
Construction of the Gudauri-Kobi section of the Mtskheta-Stepantsminda-Larsi road	135,0	108,0
Rehabilitation work of Tsnori-Dedoplistkaro-Kvemo Kedi road	10,0	5,0
Construction of Senaki-Poti-Sarpi section of the road	1,8	0,0
Funding for the construction of emergency clinics and rural ambulatories	3,9	0,0
Purchasing houses for refugees as well as providing living places for families left homeless due to natural disasters	2,0	0,8
Constructing state-of-the-art buildings for Kakheti and Kartli medical divisions of the LEPL Levan Samkharauli National Forensics Bureau	1,5	0,0
Allocating money for local self-government units	224,9	36,0
Activities for eliminating the effects of the natural disasters occurring in May-June of the current year	4,8	2,0
Expenses connected with the construction of the coast-protecting structures on the Adlia coastline	5,0	0,0
Activities for eliminating the effects of the natural disasters occurring in June-July of the current year	10,1	2,0
Activities for eliminating the effects of the natural disasters occurring during the current year	10,0	0,0

Conclusion

Pursuant to the Draft Law on the 2014 Draft Budget of Georgia, the approved plan of 2013 for the funding of regional projects measured up to GEL 449.3 million while in the plan of 2014 this amount has indeed been slashed to GEL 250 million.

The nine-month execution report of the 2013 state budget informs that only GEL 123.6 million has been earmarked for the Regional Fund instead of the planned GEL 376.8 million, which entailed funding cuts for a number of important infrastructural and social projects.

Accordingly, Giorgi Tevdoradze’s statement:  “In the 2014 state budget The funding for regional projects has decreased from GEL 449 million, as was planned in 2013, to GEL 250 million and as you know, only part of the planned activities has been completed,” is TRUE.