Resume: At a meeting with Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in 2012, Bidzina Ivanishvili stated that it was possible to build 100,000 houses for them for USD 60,000 each and these kinds of houses would be built. There is a video of this promise. In the video, Mr Ivanishvili says the following: “Houses with three-four rooms and a bathroom and a kitchen have to be built for IDPs and for that nearly USD 4-6 billion will be needed.” However, he did not specify what money would be spent to build these houses for IDPs (his personal funds or some otherwise allocated money). Of additional note is that Mr Ivanishvili later distanced himself from this promise and stated that he never promised IDPs to build 100,000 homes.

Under the Georgian Dream’s rule, 12,044 IDP families were given living spaces (funded from the state budget and not from any personal initiative). However, those types of houses about which Bidzina Ivanishvili speaks in the video have not been built.

Analysis

United National Movement member, Nika Melia, spoke about Bidzina Ivanishvili’s promise to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) given in 2012: “At a meeting in 2012, Bidzina Ivanishvili promised IDPs that he would build 100,000 houses for them, houses with three and four rooms. As stated by Ivanishvili, one house would cost USD 60,000 but he has not built a single house.”

FactCheck found a video on the internet of Bidzina Ivanishvili’s meeting with IDPs in 2012. Mr Ivanishvili stated: “I made a statement at one of the coalition’s meetings where I stated that I calculated how much money will be needed to bring you (IDPs) homes. In accordance with my calculations, at least USD 4 to 6 billion will be needed for this. There is a chance to do so, with our own funds and getting outside help will also be easy. There will be a lot of houses to build and, in fact, at least 100,000 houses have to be built. These have to be average European-style houses because we Georgians love very big houses. These houses with three-four bedrooms, including a bathroom, heating, gas and a kitchen cost approximately USD 60,000.”

The leader of the Georgian Dream did not give a specific time for this promise to be fulfilled. However, his statement that it is possible to build 100,000 houses for USD 60,000 each and that these houses were to be built is an obvious election campaign promise. The Georgian Dream already has a second term in power (the second term started in 2016). However, it has been seven years since this promise was made and work to fulfil it has not started.

Of note is that later in 2016, Bidzina Ivanishvili rejected his promise and stated that he had never publicly promised IDPs to build 100,000 houses.

Currently, there are 243,111 people registered in the IDP database which constitute 88,704 families. As of today, 40,168 families own a living space (45% of the total number of IDP families registered in the database).

Since 2013 to today, living space has been given to 12,044 IDP families. Of this amount, 3,257 families were given apartments in newly-built housing blocks whilst the remaining 8,787 families were given living spaces under legal ownership as a part of the House in a Village project where individual houses and land plots were purchased for them.

Even though 12,044 IDP families have been given living space under the Georgian Dream’s rule (provided from budget funds and not by any personal initiative), it is a fact that these types of houses about which Bidzina Ivanishvili speaks in his video were not built.