PM attends launch of Charitable and Educational Center in Batumi

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, together with Chairman of the Government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara Zurab Pataradze, attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the charitable and educational center Bethlehem in Batumi.

According to the Prime Minister’s press office, the center will be built on Giorgi Antsukhelidze Street with the blessing of Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II and Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III. The facility will include a shelter for elderly people and persons with disabilities, a day center for senior citizens, and a preschool education center with an inclusive learning group.

Addressing the event, Kobakhidze described the initiative as a project created with special care and said the blessing of the two Patriarchs would contribute to its success.

The Prime Minister thanked Batumi and Lazeti Metropolitan Dimitri for initiating the project and praised his decades of service to the country, Batumi, and the Adjara region. He also expressed gratitude to the construction company Gumbati, saying the project demonstrates how cooperation between the government, the Georgian Orthodox Church, and the private sector can bring important social initiatives to fruition.

During the ceremony, Metropolitan Dimitri blessed the foundation of the future center and led a prayer service.

The event was attended by members of the Georgian government and Parliament, as well as the Chairman of the Supreme Council of Adjara and members of the autonomous republic’s government.

Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister also visited the construction site of the St. Kvirike and Ivlita Church and Monastic Complex in the village of Kvirike.

The complex will include three domed churches, a bell tower, a refectory, and a gymnasium. The gymnasium building will house an educational center where young people will study computer science and other subjects alongside traditional religious disciplines, according to the Prime Minister’s press office.