PM: social assistance lists will retain only those who objectively need support

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said the government will continue reviewing the list of social assistance recipients to ensure that benefits are provided to people who objectively meet the criteria and genuinely need state support.

Speaking to journalists in Batumi, Kobakhidze described the decision as “painful but important”, saying the number of social assistance recipients should correspond to objective data.

“We made this painful but important decision so that the number of social assistance recipients corresponds to objective data. Therefore, the process will continue, and the list will retain those people who genuinely need social assistance,” Kobakhidze said.

He said the eligibility criteria for receiving social assistance were sufficiently clear to prevent the system from being used for electoral purposes.

Kobakhidze added the lists were last updated in 2020, when the number of beneficiaries was expanded amid the social and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said a de facto moratorium had been in place since then for various reasons, including concerns about provoking public dissatisfaction, as well as other objective and subjective factors.

“We made a bold decision. It is not easy to make such a decision. The criteria for distributing social assistance are so clear that no one can use it for electoral purposes,” Kobakhidze said.

He said the government had therefore begun reviewing the existing lists, acknowledging that the process could be difficult for some beneficiaries.

“Perhaps at some stage someone avoided making this painful decision, including for objective reasons. We made this painful but important decision because we want the number of social assistance recipients to correspond to objective data,” he said.

Kobakhidze added that the review would continue and that those who genuinely meet the criteria and require social assistance would remain on the list.