British Ambassador hosts locals from troubled Panksi Gorge

British Ambassador to Georgia Alexandra Hall Hall hosted young people from Georgia’s eastern Panksi Gorge at the British Embassy in Tbilisi this afternoon to discuss the opportunities available in their home area.

Together with Georgia’s State Minister for Euro-Atlantic Integration David Bakradze and senior officials from the Ministry of Defence of Georgia, Hall Hall highlighted the importance of providing various opportunities for personal and professional development for those living in the Gorge.

The guests were participants of the United Kingdom (UK) government funded project ‘Empowering the Youth in Pankisi Gorge’, implemented by the Kakheti Regional Development Fund and the Georgian Centre for Security and Development. 

British Ambassador said more opportunities should be provided for Pankisi people. Photo by British Embassy. 

The project aimed to empower youth from the mainly Muslim-populated Pankisi Gorge. Now more than 120 young people from eight villages were engaged in vocational training and many more were attending discussions.

I am delighted to welcome guests from Pankisi at the Embassy today. This is not just a very important project supported by the UK’s Conflict Stability and Security Fund, but also a life-changing one,” Hall Hall said.

As beautiful Pankisi is a little isolated from the rest of Georgia, it is very important to reach out to people who live there, especially young people and offer them various opportunities – educational, sporting or entertainment. Today at the Embassy, we will be talking to them about more educational opportunities,” the Ambassador added.

The Pankisi Gorge is mainly inhabited by Kists; people who came from the North Caucasus Dagestan Republic that’s currently under Russian control. At present there are about 8,000 Kists in Pankisi Gorge who mainly live in Duisi, Jokolo, Birkiani, Jibakhevi, Tsalakhani and Omalo villages. 

Together with the Kists, the Gorge is populated by ethnic Georgians from the mountainous regions.

In the past there were several instances when young males left the Pankisi Gorge to join and fight alongside the radical Islamic Group acting in Syria and Iraq, ISIS.

To eradicate this fact the current Government provided a range of activities for youth in the Gorge, ranging from social projects to enforcing tough legislation. 

In January this year Georgia’s Minister of Defence made a special offer to the Pankisi youth and appealed to them to join the Georgian Army. From that effort more than 30 young men from the Pankisi Gorge registered to serve their homeland in the Georgian Armed Forces.