Third Plenary Meeting on Circular Economy Mapping in Georgia

On 4th March 2022, the third Plenary Meeting on Circular Economy Mapping in Georgia will be held in Tbilisi to bring together the inter-ministerial Coordination Board of the Government of Georgia and the Task Group of the Georgian Society of Nature Explorers “Orchis” (GSNE “Orchis) for Circular Economy Mapping in the frames of the project ‘To Map Circular Economy in Georgia’ supported by the Government of Sweden and implemented in close cooperation with the Government of Georgia.

The purpose of the third Plenary Meeting is to discuss the progress made in mapping the circularity level of Georgian economy since the second Plenary Meeting on 12th November 2021, and to present the preliminary results of the complex assessment of the circularity level of Georgian economy and the perspective of circularity development. The findings are based on the collection and analysis of statistical data stored in the databases of various Georgian agencies as well as the intensive consultations held with different governmental agencies, municipalities, business associations and representatives of private businesses since the Second Plenary Meeting with the aim: (i) to properly assess the importance and development perspective of different sectors of the economy in the unified economic structure of Georgia; (ii) to get deep understanding with waste streams and management systems; (iii) to assess the effectiveness of natural, infrastructural and energy resource management; (iv) to comprehensively assess the current level of circularity using multifactorial analysis and various quantitative or semi-quantitative indicators; and (v) to identify promising directions and schemes for the development of circularity in Georgia. Another objective of the Third Plenary Meeting is to discuss the Circularity Gap Report 2022 to ensure that the Coordination Board and the Task Team are familiar with the linkage of the circular economy and climate change, global trends in terms of circularity, the circularity gaps of individual sectors and strategies that can be used to address challenges.

Mapping how circular is the economy of Georgia and developing recommendations for the Circular Economy Strategy are the first steps needed for the accelerated transition to circularity. Through the financial support of the Government of Sweden, this process was commenced in 2020 by the GSNE “Orchis” in close cooperation and active engagement of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia (MoEPA), which also ensured the establishment of the inter-ministerial Coordination Board of the Government of Georgia as the key objectives of the project call for a close collaboration with key governmental structures to enable appropriate mapping of the current circularity level of the national economy and to establish appropriate national quantitative circular economy policy targets and circular ambitions.

The implementation of the circular economy mapping programme is led by an International Expert in the Circular Economy Dr. Dariusz Prasek – Doctor in Environmental Engineering, International Expert in Sustainable Finance, Environmental, Social and Governance Areas, former Director of Operations in Environmental and Sustainability Department of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, member of the United Nations Advisory Board on Circular Economy, and Independent Expert on Development Financing at IDB Invest. He is supported by a group of local experts having a sound knowledge of the Georgian economy and environmental, social, governance and sustainable development issues. This Task Group is actively supported by the inter-ministerial working group of the Government of Georgia which includes members from different government departments to ensure broad expertise and early buy-in from key departments.

The project ‘To Map Circular Economy in Georgia’ has been implemented through funding of the Government of Sweden to accelerate the transition to the circularity through setting national quantitative circular economy policy targets and circular ambitions, identifying sector circular economy opportunities, mapping priority sectors for circular economy initiatives and sector-specific policy options, and developing recommendations for the Circular Economy Roadmap and Strategy of Georgia.

• In a circular economy, products are designed for durability, upgradeability, reparability and reusability, with a view to reusing the materials from which they are made after they reach the end of their life. Consumers use products efficiently and discard them in such a way that they can be reused or, if this is technically or economically unfeasible, recycling operators turn them into secondary materials that can enter a new production-consumption cycle.

• The transition to a circular economy requires a radical change in the way we produce and consume. This needs to be supported by the whole system, from enabling technolo-gies and infrastructures to a form of market organisation that facilitates collaboration along and across value chains and a form of governance and regulation that encourages companies to adopt circular approaches to social norms that make the circular production-consumption patterns socially preferable.

• Georgia has recently embarked on an accelerated path to transition to the circular economy. With the concerted efforts of the Government, civil society organisations, academia and international partners, Georgia initiated the development of the circular economy strategy and roadmap aimed at multidimensional approach including production, consumption, waste management, secondary raw materials, innovation, investments as well as ongoing initiatives, in different sectors, by different players, and at different stages of the value chain or different stages of development.

The third Plenary Meeting is planned in the frames of the project ‘To Map Circular Economy in Georgia’ commonly by the MoEPA and GSNE “Orchis”. The project ‘To Map Circular Economy in Georgia’ is being implemented by GSNE “Orchis”, through funding of the Government of Sweden, with the support of Georgian Ministries of Environmental Protection & Agriculture, Economy and Sustainable Development, Regional Development & Infrastructure, and Education & Science.