Tbilisi hosts first Solidarity and Innovation International Forum
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Georgia’s capital Tbilisi is today hosting the first Solidarity and Innovation International Forum, bringing together top Georgian and foreign officials to discuss a local fund that supports children and young adults with life-threatening health issues.
In the opening address, Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili thanked the foreign guests for participating in the one-day event. After the welcome the Georgian leader hosted a meeting with UN officials, which focused on the operations of the Government-initiated Solidarity Fund.
The meeting was attended by United Nations (UN) Deputy General Secretary Philippe Douste-Blazy, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director for Policy and Programme for UN Women, Yannick Glemarec and many other local and foreign guests.
When speaking about the Solidarity Fund that was created in August 2014, PM Garibashvili stressed more than 55,000 public servants and 23 private companies had donated to the Fund, which then funded vital medical treatment for children and young adults with cancer.
Through these joint efforts we have gathered 4.7 million GEL and financed the [cancer] treatment for 182 children and adults up to 22 year-old. Ninety-four of the 182 were sent abroad for necessary medical treatment,” Garibashvili said.
He said the reasons to establish the Solidarity Fund were altruistic and the current Government wanted to help the people of Georgia, as it was an area that was not addressed under the former leadership.
Three years ago the Health Ministry’s budget was 1.8 million GEL [but] now it reaches 3.1 billion GEL,” Garibashvili added.
Deputy United Nations (UN) General Secretary Philippe Douste-Blazy praised the activities of Georgia’s Solidarity Fund. Photo by the Prime Minister’s webpage.
Ensuring the health and wellbeing of Georgian citizens was one of the top priorities of the Government. Garibashvili highlighted several initiatives that had been put in place to better support the health needs of the local population, including the General Healthcare Program that covered all medical expenses for citizens and the Hepatitis C Elimination Program.
The PM added such large-scaled medical support for citizens "was unique” in the world.
We believe very soon that 200,000 citizens suffering from Hepatitis C will be totally cured due to this unprecedented program. The state budget covers all treatment costs, which is about $85,000 USD for each patient,” Garibashvili said.
Additionally, Garibashvili also met with UN Deputy General Secretary Philippe Douste-Blazy, who was regarded as one of the best world leaders in the field of financing innovations.
During the private meeting, Douste-Blazy praised the Georgian Solidarity Fund’s successful first year and welcomed Georgia’s membership in the Leading Group on Innovative Financing for Development, under the Foreign Ministry of France. Both sides agreed Georgia involvement in the international platform would enable the country to share its most modern approaches in the medical field with the Leading Group’s 55 other nations. In return, Georgia could also learn latest business practices from other developed nations.
A Georgian teenager battling an aggressive form of cancer found himself in the hot seat of Georgia’s Economy Ministry today, gaining first-hand experience of the working environment of the official position he dreams of claiming one day.
More than 3 million GEL has been donated to the Government-initiated Solidarity Fund since it was established in June 2014.
The people of Georgia have donated more than 2.5 million GEL to a fund that will pay for expensive medical treatment for children with cancer.
The people of Georgia have donated more than two million GEL to a fund that will pay for expensive medical treatment for children with cancer.
Georgia’s Government is launching the nation’s first charity fund that will be financed through voluntary donations from public sector employees to help children and adult with health problems.
The people of Georgia have donated almost two million GEL to a fund that will pay for expensive medical treatment for children with cancer
Government-initiated Solidarity Fund has fully funded medical treatment of 48 seriously ill children since its establishment in August 2014.
No child with cancer in Georgia has died due to lack of finances in the past year thanks to increased public donations. The Government-initiated Solidarity Fund presented a report overviewing its work since it established in July 2014.
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