The Georgian government has decided to abolish the International Education Centre and transfer its functions to the Education Ministry. The centre provided funding for post-graduate education within Georgia and abroad.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze issued the decree abolishing the centre as of 1 January 2026 on Tuesday.
The decree has designated the Education Ministry as the centre’s legal successor.
According to its official website, the International Education Centre, established in 2014, worked on ‘fostering the development of highly qualified professionals’ according to international standards.
It provides Georgians with the opportunity to study at ‘leading universities worldwide’, sponsoring their post-graduate studies. The centre also offered funding to students inside Georgia.
The centre obliges recipients of grants to study abroad to return to Georgia to work in their field for three years.
The centre is slated to offer grant programmes for Georgian students in partnership with Fullbright and the Hungaricum Scholarship Programme, among others, for the 2025–2026 academic year.
It is yet unclear how the decision to merge the centre’s functions with the Education Ministry will affect grant recipients.
The decree to abolish the centre came just a week after the government’s announcement of a set of controversial higher education reforms in mid-October.
The reform includes changes to the university funding system and the redistribution of faculties, with a heavier emphasis being placed on higher education institutions outside Tbilisi.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
