The director of the National Assessment and Examinations Centre (NAEC), Maia Miminoshvili, has submitted an incomplete asset declaration: the property owned by her family members and their entrepreneurial activities have not been indicated in the document. In addition, for years, Miminoshvili’s family members have been employed by her agency bypassing competition, which constitutes a violation of the law.

Property and business activities that have not been included in the declaration

The declaration that Maia Miminoshvili submitted on 31 August 2017 does not indicate that Miminoshvili’s son, Aleksandre Kanchaveli (who lives with her), had owned 14 percent of shares of Archi Development, LLC. Kanchaveli owned shares of this company since its establishment – 25 February 2013, however, Maia Miminoshvili never included this information in any of her declarations. Aleksandre Kanchaveli sold his shares for GEL 140,000 to Irakli Kapianidze on 30 June 2017.

The connection of Miminoshvili’s family member to this company is especially noteworthy given the fact that another owner of the shares of Archi Development (59 percent), a Georgian Parliament Member from the ruling party, Ivliane Tsulaia, and the company director, Tengiz Tsulaia, have been significant donors to the Georgian Dream: Ivliane Tsulaia made a donation of GEL 110,000 in 2016-2017 and Tengiz Tsulaia – of GEL 50,000 in 2016 to the ruling party.

Two more circumstances have not been mentioned in Maia Miminoshvili’s latest asset declaration: the daughter-in-law of the NAEC director, Ketevan Mikelaishvili (who also lives with her), on 12 December 2016, bought a property with an area of 60 sq. m in an apartment block under construction in the settlement of Mukhiani in Tbilisi. In addition, Mikelaishvili is a director and owner of 100 percent of shares of KT, LLC, registered on 8 December 2016.

Maia Miminoshvili’s family members in NAEC

According to Maia Miminoshvili’s asset declaration, in 2009-2012, her daughter-in-law, Ketevan Mikelaishvili, worked as an aide to the deputy director of NAEC, while in 2014-2016, Miminoshvili’s son, Aleksandre Kanchaveli, was a coordinator of the Batumi Examinations Centre during the Centralized University Entry Examinations.

According to the information available on the NAEC website, neither Maia Miminoshvili’s daughter-in-law nor her son was selected through a competition. According to the public information that Transparency International Georgia received from NAEC, Aleksandre Kanchaveli was interviewed and trained before being hired as a coordinator of the Batumi Examinations Centre while Ketevan Mikelaishvili was a non-staff employee.

According to the law, Maia Miminoshvili, as a director of the Legal Entity of Public Law – the National Assessment and Examinations Centre, is considered a public official.[1] According to Paragraph 13 of Article 13 of the Law on Conflict of Interest and Corruption in Public Institutions, a public official’s close relative cannot be appointed – through signing an administrative or labour agreement – to a position subordinated to this public official (with the exception of appointment as a result of a competition).

Conclusion and recommendations

The submission of an incomplete declaration by the director of NAEC, specifically, the failure to enter in full the information about her family members’ entrepreneurial activities and property ownership, is a violation of the requirements stipulated in Article 15 of the Law on Conflict of Interest and Corruption in Public Institutions. Correspondingly, we call on:

• the Public Service Bureau – to examine Maia Miminoshvili’s asset declaration based on the provided information;
• the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports – to study the possible instances of the conflict of interest in public service concerning the appointment of Maia Miminoshvili’s son as a coordinator of the Batumi Examinations Centre and Ketevan Mikelaishvili’s employment as an aide to the deputy director of NAEC.