Public Policy for Ecomigration Management in Georgia: From Reactive Administration to Strategic Governance
Author : Ineza Zoidze, Irakli Manvelidze, Fati Khalvashi 30/09/2026
The study presents a critical analysis of the legal-institutional framework and strategic logic of state policy on eco-migrants in Georgia. The relevance of the issue is determined by increasing natural risks caused by environmental change, particularly in mountainous regions, where eco-migration has transformed from a social phenomenon into a public governance challenge. Although policy documents exist, institutional integration of eco-migration policy, preventive capacities, and its impact on political, social, and economic stability remain insufficiently studied academically.
Although legal and institutional mechanisms for eco-migrant resettlement in Georgia have been established, the effectiveness of preventive capacities, social integration mechanisms, and long-term strategic vision remains problematic. The aim is to analyse the legal, institutional, and strategic foundations of state policy on eco-migrants in Georgia, assess its effectiveness, and identify systemic gaps hindering preventive and sustainable governance. The legal framework, reactive and preventive characteristics of the policy, the institutional model’s impact on social integration, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, and strategic document updates are assessed.
The study is based on institutional analysis and the public policy cycle model and uses a qualitative analysis of documents. The empirical base covers Ministerial Order No. 779, the 2014 strategic policy document, the Ministry’s 2025 reporting materials, and official data obtained through public information requests. The assessment uses an analytical matrix evaluating strategic integration, institutional coordination, preventive capacities, social integration, and monitoring mechanisms.
The results show that Georgia’s eco-migration policy framework is reactive and institutionally fragmented. It is oriented toward resettlement following natural disasters and administrative procedures, while systematic risk assessment, long-term territorial planning, and eco-migrant integration-adaptation are weakly institutionalised. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are administrative and less outcome-oriented.
The findings contribute to academic discourse by reinterpreting eco-migration: it is considered not merely an instrument of social protection, but a political field of public governance. The operational framework for institutional assessment presented, relevant to Georgia and other transitional systems, shifts descriptive policy analysis toward a systemic-institutional perspective.
Keywords: Georgia, Public policy, Resettlement policy, Eco-migration, Environmental risks, Socio-political stability/security.
Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.55367/MYZD8315