As of today, we can say that the initial response in Mestia has been quite effective, Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia stated in his comment on the epidemiological situation in Mestia, during today’s meeting of the Interagency Coordination Council. Press Service of the Government Administration released this information.

According to the Head of Government, the Interior Ministry has ensured and enforced the movement restrictions which the Government was forced to introduce.

These restrictions cause discomfort to the local population and visiting guests alike, the Prime Minister pointed out, but the health of citizens is the supreme value.

“We must have curbed an outbreak in Mestia just on time, though we have yet to get a full picture. As far as I know, 1,000 test samples have been brought back with results yet to come in. In any case, we already have 14 new cases beyond these 1,000 samples. The results of these 1,000 samples will be known later today, so we will see a full picture of the situation in Svaneti. As of now, we can say that the initial rapid response in Mestia has been quite effective. The Interior Ministry has ensured and enforced the movement restrictions which we were forced to introduce, even though we understand that these restrictions cause serious discomfort to the local population and visiting guests alike. But we all must remember that the health of citizens is the supreme value. We have said repeatedly that the virus is still here, and we must be extra cautious and vigilant to build on the success achieved so far. That is imperative now. Without effective virus risk management, no economic revival is possible. These two are interconnected issues,” Giorgi Gakharia stated.

According to the Head of Government, 919 citizens were transported from Svaneti to quarantine zones yesterday. The Prime Minister urged relevant agencies to ensure effective management at quarantine areas.
“Yesterday 919 citizens were transported from Svaneti to quarantine zones. As of today, we have 7,700 people in quarantine areas, and although relevant agencies, the Ministry of Economy and the Tourism Administration, are doing everything, the situation here is quite tense. Given the growth of returning citizens, we must do everything to ensure effective management at quarantine spaces, one of the most important components in the fight against the virus. Consequently, relevant agencies must pay due attention to the management of these spaces,” Giorgi Gakharia emphasized.

According to the Prime Minister, there are several other directions posing risks. Georgia has reciprocated several countries by opening our borders to them, the Head of Government said. As of today, 1,520 applications to visit the country have been filed, and 751 tourists are already in Georgia.

“It is our direct duty to protect the health of these visitors, and the command center must pay due attention to this direction. The numbers of business visitor exceed 4,000 in the last period, which means that they are all presently in Georgia. But the direction of business visits is key to keeping the country’s economy going and gradually spurring economic activities,” Giorgi Gakharia said.

The Head of Government also spoke about the epidemiological situation in Kazbegi and emphasizes that the rumors about the Government intending to enforce restrictions there are groundless. The epidemiological situation in Kazbegi and the Larsi checkpoint is fully under control, the Prime Minister said.

According to the Head of Government, 54,205 international freight drivers have been tested so far, of which 788 have tested positive for the virus.

“Since we started testing international freight drivers, 54,205 people have been tested, of which 788 have tested positive for the virus. Some may think that these numbers are insignificant, but even one person entering the country without control may have triggered devastating consequences. These directions must be controlled with extra care and caution.

In addition, you know that we have several infected Interior Ministry employees previously serving at the Larsi checkpoint. Now various media outlets are spreading rumors about the Government intending to enforce restrictions in Kazbegi but, in reality, there are no risks in Kazbegi or the Larsi checkpoint-the epidemiological situation is fully under control. So, these are just rumors, and nobody plans to enforce any restrictions in Kazbegi,” Giorgi Gakharia said.