The Financial Transparency Department of the State Audit Office has launched a monitoring procedure into the non-entrepreneurial (non-commercial) legal entity “Tbilisi School of Political Studies” over the alleged receipt of a foreign grant without required government approval, the State Audit Office has confirmed.

The agency stated that it will exercise its statutory powers under Georgian law, in accordance with the provisions of the Law of Georgia on Grants, to conduct a thorough investigation.

The probe followed reports that Armaz Akhvlediani, head of the Tbilisi School of Political Studies, hosted an educational seminar with funding from the Council of Europe. EU Ambassador Paweł Herczyński also attended that event.

According to available information, no prior application was submitted to the government for authorisation, as required by the Law on Grants.