Tbilisi. On April 19, the hotel Ambasadori hosted final, summarizing event of the "Georgia Applied Research Facility - Regional Development" (GARF-RD) program.

As you know, in the context of the association with Europe, it is of great importance for Georgia to lead a regional development policy, implemented on the basis of researches and evidences.

To respond to mentioned challenges, in May 2014, the Civil Society Institute (CSI), through the financial support of the European Commission Mission in Georgia and the coordination of the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure of Georgia, started implementation of a regional development program (2014-2016 yrs.) - "Georgia Applied Research Facility - Regional Development" (GARF-RD).

The project aimed at:

1.Providing support to analytical centers, operating in Georgia, in the process of preparation of public policy documents for specific areas of regional development;

2.Interconnecting analytical centers, working in the field of regional development, and discussing elaborated visions with the government.

Within the frames of the project 10 public policy documents were worked out in two directions: a) regional policy management, local self-governance and competitiveness of regions; b) policies territorial impact analysis.

The final meeting was attended by the representatives of the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure, the project coordinator from the European Union, the public organizations, members of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, the experts in regional development and self-governance issues, the representatives of analytical organizations and academic institutions.