Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport - Mikheil Batiashvili and Ambassador of the Republic of Italy to Georgia - Antonio Enrico Bartoli presented a new program "Italian as Second Language".

From 2018-2019 academic year, students will have the opportunity to learn Italian as a second foreign language if they wish so. The capability was made possible by merits of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia, together withthe Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Italian Republic, based on the signed Memorandum of Understanding in the field of general education.

According to the Memorandum, the Parties encourage joint projects and initiatives in the field of general education, who are interested in learning the Italian language and continuing their studies in Italian.

With the efforts of the Italian Embassy and with the strong support of the Ministry, the Italian standard was established as a second language program and therefore the process has already begun at 20 schools across Georgia, including 13 public and 7 private schools. The Italian side provided these schools with the necessary textbooks, in conjunction with training the teachers and allocation  the additional salary amounts to the general education annual budget.

The Minister spoke about the importance of strengthening the teaching of European languages ​​and the future prospects of close cooperation with the Italian Republic. According to him, the study of languages ​​is not only the acquisition of communication competences, but it also provides the acquaintance of the culture and civilization of a certain country, as well as the friendship of the local people and the further development of relations.

The Ambassador emphasized the importance of cooperation and the importance of the steps taken to popularize the Italian language and express appreciation for all those who promote Italian language in Georgian educational space.