On air on Rustavi 2, the former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, elaborated upon projects in Georgia which have been stopped, including Tskaltubo, and stated: "As of today, only the projects funded by the World Bank are operational in Tskaltubo, whilst we were planning to build Baden-Baden. The most famous thermal healing baths are in Baden-Baden. We were building an exact copy of this in Tskaltubo, only slightly modernised. Now, the Prime Minister visited Tskaltubo and said they are building Baden-Baden. We were building exactly the same but they killed this project just because it was started by us."

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took interest in Mikheil Saakashvili’s statement and verified its accuracy.

On 14 September 2012, during his visit to Tskaltubo, the then President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, announced the start of the "great rehabilitation of Tskaltubo."

On 2 October 2013, Mikheil Saakashvili used his helicopter to inspect the construction which had been stopped after 1 October 2012. He also talked about the halting of the Tskaltubo rehabilitation project: "We had started a project in terms of which the construction of the Tskaltubo Entertainment Park was to have been finished in the summer. New bathhouses and a hotel were to have been built as well. However, the main project aimed at upgrading Tskaltubo’s infrastructure has been halted."

On 25 April 2015, the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Gharibashvili, and the Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development of Georgia, Nodar Javakhishvili, visited Tskaltubo where they inspected the rehabilitated spa resort. "Following my directive, the Partnership Fund has produced a plan of how Tskaltubo will be developed. We wish for more investors to take part. A French company has already expressed its interest," said the Prime Minister.

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requested information from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development of Georgia about finished and operational projects implemented in Tskaltubo before and after October 2012. The Ministry forwarded our letter to the Municipal Development Fund which answered only two months later.

A total of 21 infrastructural projects were implemented in Tskaltubo from 1999 to 1 October 2012. These projects mainly dealt with the rehabilitation of roads, schools, water supply routes and sewers.

A total of 13 projects have been in the process of implementation in Tskaltubo since 1 October 2012, eight of which will be finished in 2015. The implementation of the projects was halted for a short time after the new government assumed office. The rehabilitation of Tskaltubo Central Park was also halted which was due to the non-fulfilment of its obligation by Sani Ltd. As a result, the contract with Sani Ltd was abolished and a new tender was held. It should be noted that the representative of Sani Ltd, Irakli Gvaramia, contacted us about this issue and told us that delayed payments from the Municipal Development Fund resulted in the non-fulfilment of the contract. FactCheck

asked for more detailed information on the matter but we have yet to receive answers to our questions.

The Tskaltubo rehabilitation project is being implemented with funding from the World Bank. On 6 November 2012, the World Bank allocated a total of USD 37 million in terms of a second regional project

which comprises developing regional infrastructure in the Imereti Region and upgrading its tourism abilities.

We asked the former and current representatives of the local government to comment upon finished and on-going projects in Tskaltubo. According to the statement of Tskaltubo Municipality Governor, Konstantine Mamiseishvili: "Ten large-scale infrastructural projects are being implemented in Tskaltubo with funding from the World Bank. These projects include the construction of small buildings near Lake Tsivi, the rehabilitation of the town’s circular road and the rehabilitation of outdoor lighting, roads, pathways and drainage systems around Tskaltubo Central Park and Lake Tsivi. It also includes the restoration of the former police and train station buildings as well as the Iveria concert hall and the municipal government building, the rehabilitation of small pedestrian bridges in the park, planting greenery in Tskaltubo Central Park and near Lake Tsivi, the development of the area and the creation of irrigational systems. The implementation of large-scale projects was temporarily delayed when the new government assumed office. The reasons for this were incorrectly planned and overdue construction projects; however, after temporary setbacks, all of the big projects were resumed. Two bathhouses (number one and number six) have been rehabilitated in Tskaltubo as of today. The rehabilitated Tskaltubo will be presented in August."

According to the former Chairman of Tskaltubo City Council, Mamuka Saghareishvili: "The World Bank allocated a total of USD 42 million for the rehabilitation of Tskaltubo. Adding money from the state budget was also planned. Holiday Inn Group (businessman Temur Ugulava) was also planning to invest GEL 50 million for the rehabilitation of Hotel Shakhtar. The investor would receive the building for the symbolic price of GEL 1 and build five apartment blocks for MPs in Tskaltubo in return. Unfortunately, both of these projects were stopped after the elections. Work is now on-going in Tskaltubo but the rhythm and the quality are low. We wanted to make a spa-resort much like Baden-Baden. Instead of this, after its rehabilitation, Tskaltubo will be a resort similar to the one it was in the Soviet years."

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also talked with Tskaltubo Municipality MP, Akaki Bobokhidze, about the process of Tskaltubo’s rehabilitation. According to his statement: "During the previous government, it was planned to allocate GEL 200 million from the state budget for Tskaltubo’s rehabilitation, apart from the World Bank project. This money would be spent on turning Tskaltubo into a resort of European standard. It was planned to upgrade Tskaltubo’s infrastructure and bathhouses and repair the hotel facades. After the change in government, only the World Bank project remained and no money has been allocated from the state budget, of course. Currently, the construction work is on-going in Tskaltubo but the rhythm and scale have been decreased."

With the initiative of the current government, the Partnership Fund has formulated a long-term plan for Tskaltubo’s development as a health and healing spa-resort. The plan includes two stages of development and aims to rehabilitate the town’s hotels and bathhouses. At the first stage, the focus will be on attracting investors from Georgia and neighbouring countries (Eastern Europe) whilst the second stage of development will mainly focus upon Western European spa brands. According to the exit plan, investments from USD 720 million to USD 865 million are expected in Tskaltubo in the next ten years.

According to the information of the Administration of the Government of Georgia, a three-story, international standard spa and rehabilitation centre with ultra-modern equipment was opened in Tskaltubo Central Park on 18 July 2015. The project was fulfilled by a businessman, Badri Kakabadze, with its overall value reaching GEL 5 million.

Conclusion

The main stage of Tskaltubo’s rehabilitation started with funding from the World Bank in November 2012. The main part of the planned work has already been finished and the presentation of a rehabilitated Tskaltubo (the restored central park, rehabilitated territory around Lake Tsivi, a modern sport complex on Lake Tsivi, rehabilitated buildings in the city centre, restored bathhouses number one and number six and the spa and the rehabilitation centre) is planned at the end of the month.

According to the information of the Tskaltubo Municipality Governor, there were some setbacks in the planned construction but projects funded by the World Bank were subsequently resumed.

After the change in the government, the Partnership Fund formulated a long-term plan for Tskaltubo’s development. In his statement, the former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, talked about the stopped and delayed projects. According to the information obtained by us, the implementation of the projects planned in Tskaltubo was indeed stopped for some time but the process was later resumed.

On 5 October 2012, Mikheil Saakashvili stated that in five years’ time Tskaltubo would be the best known resort in the whole post-Soviet area.

At this stage, FactCheck leaves the former President’s statement WITHOUT VERDICT and will provide readers with information about Tskaltubo as further events unfold.