Tbilisi Concert Hall (Philharmonic) has an "interim director" for the third year.
The position of the director of Tbilisi Concert Hall became vacant after the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia terminated the contract with International Events Ltd in 2019 by the order of the Chairman of the National Agency for State Property. Management rights on 100% stake of Tbilisi Concert Hall were returned to the state again.
Today, the Philharmonic is a subsidiary of the state company "Asset Management and Development Company" and since 2019 its director is Vasil Vashakidze, who is also the head of the analytical department of the National Agency for State Property.
On November 9, 2019, a release issued by the Ministry of Economy stated that the state would develop a plan to raise funds for the Tbilisi Concert Hall, although this plan has not been seen for the third year.
"As you know, the pandemic made the culture as one of the most unpredictable sectors, so it became difficult to develop a plan announced before the coronavirus pandemic," said the Asset Management and Development Company.
As bm.ge found out, the government is not planning to privatize the Philharmonic or lease it for a long time.
"At this stage, the Asset Management and Development Company is not considering the alienation of the property owned by the Tbilisi Sate Concert Hall Ltd and / or the issuance of a long-term lease," the company said, but did not explain the reasons.
According to the public information requested by bm.ge from the Asset Management and Development Company, during 2020-2021, the Tbilisi Concert Hall Ltd. employed an average of 39 people in 2020, GEL 940,421 was spent on their salaries, while in 2021 - GEL 896,954. According to the Asset Management Company, the mentioned expenses were covered by the Tbilisi Concert Hall with its own revenues, and in general, other expenses are covered by the Philharmonic itself.
