United in Diversity – Georgia to Celebrate Europe Day 2024 as EU candidate country for the first time
This year Georgia celebrates its first Europe Day as a country candidate to join the European Union. Thousands of people are expected to come together to celebrate peace, diversity and the values uniting the EU and Georgia. Like last year, the celebration will be held at the Expo Georgia exhibition centre in Tbilisi, offering a chance to visitors to travel virtually to countries of the EU and to learn more about the EU’s three decades-long support to Georgia.
Europe Day is usually celebrated on May 9, yet this year all public events will be held in Tbilisi on Saturday, 11 May to allow as many people as possible to attend. Six different spaces will be organised in five pavilions and courtyards of Expo Georgia, where visitors of all ages and backgrounds will experience what the European Union is all about.
For the EU Ambassador to Georgia, Paweł Herczyński, Europe Day is much more than just a holiday: “It is a proof of the enormous success of the European project that began in 1950 with Robert Schuman’s Declaration and brought peace, democracy and prosperity to all EU Member States. It is a day when we reflect on our common past and look forward to the future we want to build together. This year the celebration in Tbilisi will underline that the doors to EU membership for Georgia – an EU candidate country – have finally been opened wide. Now it is up to the Georgians to walk through that doors by swiftly implementing necessary reforms.”
One of the most important spaces will be “Team Europe” in Pavilion 4 and 5, where the embassies of the EU Member States will introduce the visitors to the culture and history of their countries. Together with the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia and the European Investment Bank, they will offer fun and educational activities, give out souvenirs, and organise cultural performances and concerts.
Pavilion 11 will host the projects the EU funds in Georgia presenting their activities. In this space, project representatives will propose fun games and activities around important topics such as economic development, environment, culture, youth, digital transformation and democracy, among others.
At the agro-market “Unique Georgian Taste” in the courtyard, visitors will be able to sample products and dishes offered by farmers from different regions of Georgia and get to know how the EU supports them as Georgia prepares to integrate the EU.
Europe Day celebrations has much to offer our very young visitors. In addition to the many activities offered to children, a puppet show “Luna and the Planet of Fireflies” will be held in a specially opened marquee.
For the first time, Pavilion 3 will host entrepreneurs who have benefited from EU support to start up or expand their businesses. In this space, visitors will be able to purchase the unique items those entrepreneurs produce.
Pavilion 6 will host panel talks with celebrities moderated by well-known journalist David Gorgiladze, on a variety of topics including on values, culture and environment related initiatives as well as opportunities for businesses and youth. The talks aim to promote a better understanding of the EU’s role in public and community engagement as part of the EU-Georgia partnership.
About Europe Day:
Europe Day is celebrated around the world each year on 9 May to commemorate the 1950 Declaration of Robert Schuman, then-French Foreign Minister. Schuman set out his idea for a new form of political cooperation in Europe, which would make war between Europe’s nations unthinkable by asking them to share their coal and steel reserves. The concept was the beginning of what is today known as the European Union. Since then, the EU has been developing, working, uniting and ensuring peace and prosperity for up to 447 million people across 27 countries of the world.
About EU-Georgia relations:
For more than 30 years, the European Union has built a close partnership with Georgia, supporting its development through knowledge and experience sharing, expertise, innovation and financial support. Georgia was granted EU candidate status in December 2023, on the understanding that the relevant 9 steps set out in the Commission recommendation of 8 November 2023 are taken. The relationship between the EU and Georgia is based on shared values of peace, freedom, democracy, human rights and inclusive economic growth.
The EU is Georgia’s largest foreign donor. Per capita, Georgia receives one of the highest levels of assistance of all of the EU’s partners. The EU currently provide around EUR 85 million of grant funds annually. In 2014, the EU and Georgia signed an Association Agreement, followed by the introduction of a preferential trade regime, the Deep & Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). The EU is now Georgia’s largest trading partner, focused on the introduction of high standards and quality, while respecting and promoting Georgian heritage, traditions, and culture.
The EU and Georgia work together for a cleaner environment and sustainable lifestyles. Collaboration between Georgians and EU citizens help connect people digitally and physically, improve skills, and enrich lives. The opportunity to freely travel to Schengen area countries under a visa-free agreement has brought benefits to more than a million Georgian citizens, since coming into effect on 28 March 2017.