The Georgian Parliament Building in Kutaisi ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტის შენობა ქუთაისში, tr) was constructed from 2011 to 2012 in

Kutaisi Kutaisi (, ka, ქუთაისი ) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the third-most populous city in Georgia, traditionally, second in importance, after the capital city of Tbilisi. Situated west of Tbil ...

, traditionally the second most important city of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, west of

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

, the nation's capital, to house the

Parliament of Georgia The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members; of these, 120 are proporti ...

. Built by the architecture firm CMD Ingenieros, the building was inaugurated on 26 May 2012 and, according to the respective constitutional clause, became the main seat of the newly elected Parliament in October 2012 until the legislature moved back to Tbilisi in January 2019. The exterior of the building is dominated by a by oval-shaped great glass and steel dome ploughed by a roof-like concrete element that rests on the vault. It was constructed on the initiative of then-

President of Georgia President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Mikheil Saakashvili on the site of a memorial to Soviet soldiers of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

; the monument was demolished with explosives to free space for the construction in December 2009, accidentally killing two people, a mother and a daughter. The government, during the building's construction, promoted it as a symbol of Georgia's bright, democratic future. Its location in Kutaisi was touted as a boost for the regional economy there as well as a way to knit the country closer together. Critics state that the building is a waste of money, and that having Parliament in Kutaisi, while the rest of the government remains in Tbilisi, is inefficient. After Saakashvili's term in office expired, the new government of the

Georgian Dream Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia ( ka, ქართული ოცნება – დემოკრატიული საქართველო, ''Kartuli ocneba – Demok’rat’iuli Sakartvelo'') is a social democratic political ...

coalition decided to move all parliamentary activities back to Tbilisi. The constitutional amendment passed in 2017 entered into force in December 2018, containing no reference to Kutaisi as the seat of the Parliament, meaning that the Parliament fully returned to the capital in January 2019. The building in Kutaisi is set to pass into possession of the

Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს შინაგან საქმეთა სამინისტრო), abbreviated MIA (''შსს''), is the highest state law enforcement agency of Geor ...

References

{{reflist Parliament 2012 Buildings and structures in Kutaisi Legislative buildings in Europe Former seats of national legislatures Government buildings completed in 2012 2012 establishments in Georgia (country)