The Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia, Mikheil Chkhenkeli attended the anniversary virtual event of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and addressed the attending public. The event was opened by Jonathan Brooks, Vice President of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).
Mikheil Chkhenkeli: “I am glad to have the opportunity to summarize the remarkable progress made by our many years of fruitful cooperation in improving the quality of education in Georgia. I would like to express our sincere gratitude once again to the United States Government and the American people for their support of education reform and for their great contribution to the development of human capital. I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly congratulate my American friends and the American people in advance on the upcoming Fourth of July Independence Day celebration."
Mikheil Chkhenkeli emphasized that the largest investment made by MCC for all levels of education in Georgia has had a significant impact on Georgian citizens, especially young people.
Additionally, the Minister singled out the infrastructure projects implemented with the support of the Millennium Challenge Corporation and the programs of the University of San Diego in the direction of STEM. According to Minister Chkhenkeli, these programs are especially popular among freshmen-year students.
Mikheil Chkhenkeli also spoke about the brand-new USAID's $ 7 million program, which aims to promote interactive teaching at Georgian public schools. The program will help students develop reading, mathematical, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. The Minister expressed hope that the future cooperation with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) will be just as fruitful and successful.
The anniversary was also attended by the Executive Director of the Millennium Foundation Georgia - Magda Maghradze and representatives of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).
The second compact of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) entered into force on July 1, 2014 in Georgia. Between 2014-2019, the Millennium Challenge Corporation funded projects worth $ 140 million. These projects have contributed to the development of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in Georgia. The investments have covered almost the entire sector of the education system - general, vocational, and higher education, thus ensuring the preparation of highly qualified personnel for Georgia’s economic growth.
Moreover, under the second compact, 91 public schools were fully renovated between 2014-2019 and equipped with science laboratories. The learning environment has improved for up to 40,000 students, more than 20,000 people have completed long-term vocational development courses, 51 new vocational education programs have been developed, and up to 600 students are currently enrolled in the international bachelor's degree programs accredited by San Diego State University in Georgia.