Dear honorable guests and distinguished delegates,

It gives me a great pleasure to extend to you all a very warm welcome on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia to the 15th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Sport hosted by Georgia on 15-17 of October, 2018 in a capital city - Tbilisi.

The conference is organized by the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) of the Council of Europe in co-operation with the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia.

Georgia is a relatively small country in the large European family and our sport traditions go long back to the ancient times. On 15-17 of October, 2018 Georgia hosts one of the most prestigious and important events in a world of sport. More than 200 official representatives from around 50 countries from Council of Europe, EPAS, as well as international organizations, experts and different stakeholders will visit Georgia. It is a great opportunity for our country to host such an important Conference and an honor and unique chance for Georgian authorities to contribute to the development of Pan European cooperation in sport.

Let me hereby emphasize, that the date of the conference is symbolic as Georgia is celebrating its 100th anniversary since the establishment of the first Democratic Republic of Georgia.

Agenda of the Conference covers a wide range of highly significant topics relating to the sport development in general, as well as global threats in sport of today’s world. The conference provides invaluable opportunities for planning, discussing, creating and acting together to meet the common challenges the world of sport is facing these days.

On this occasion, I would like to draw your attention to the initiative of adopting TBILISI DECLARATION - On Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in Sport within the scope of the 15th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Sport. The document shares the spirit and principles of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It emphasizes significant potential of sport to promote human rights and fundamental freedoms.

In conclusion, I wish all of you every success in your deliberations and future endeavors and a very pleasant stay in our beautiful and hospitable country.

Mikheil Batiashvili

Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia