In 2023, the travel expenses of Georgian deputies totaled approximately two million lari [about $752,000]. This information was published by the non-governmental organization Waste Detector. According to the organization’s data, the total amount spent on business trips by deputies in 2023 significantly exceeds the similar indicator for 2022. In particular, in 2023, foreign trips of deputies cost a total of 1,849,239 lari [about $695,000], and domestic trips amounted to 90,510 lari [about $34,000].
In addition to visits to European countries, members of the ruling team in 2023 made business trips to the United Arab Emirates, the USA, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Bahrain, Uzbekistan, Canada, Chile, Uruguay, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, Vietnam, Angola, China, and Argentina.
According to the Waste Detector report, the most expensive trip in 2023 was the visit of parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili to Angola, which cost 18,973 lari [about $7,000].
The trips of representatives of the ruling team, Nikoloz Samkharadze and Salome Kurasbediani, who were likely in Angola with Papuashvili, cost a total of 33,844 lari [about $13,000].
Additionally, Nikoloz Samkharadze spent 14,774 lari [about $5,500] on a visit to Chile and Uruguay.