On 9 September 2011 the Public Health Institute of Georgia (PHIG) was registered in Tbilisi as an independent, non-profit (non-commercial) legal entity, identification number 404407815 (source: National Agency of Public Registry of Georgia).
The institute was founded to strengthen public health in Georgia through evidence, education and public information, and to promote the quality and safety of health care. From the start it combined academic work with public communication — an approach that later shaped its advocacy for independent accreditation of health facilities.
Today PHIG works as a regional public health institute for the Caucasus, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Türkiye, organised in four pillars and three platforms.
The institute was founded by Prof. Giorgi Pkhakadze MD, MPH, PhD, who serves as its Chair. PHIG’s founding mandate was to fill the gap between Georgia’s public health academic infrastructure — centred on medical universities — and the applied policy and systems work that international partners were seeking a credible Georgian institutional counterpart to engage with.
Since its establishment, PHIG has grown into a multi-platform organisation with four programme pillars (health security, health and migration, environment and work, quality and safety), three knowledge platforms (the Georgian Medical Journal, GMJ Academy, and the Sheni health media network), and two accreditation partnerships (Accréditation Sans Frontières and Accreditation Canada International). The institute operates from its registered address at 3 Betlemi Rise, Tbilisi, and maintains working relationships with WHO Geneva, IOM, the Global Fund, and a network of academic partners across Europe, Central Asia, and North America.
PHIG is a non-profit organisation registered under Georgian law (registration ID 404407815). Its activities are funded through a combination of project grants, consultancy contracts with international organisations, and platform revenues from its digital health media and accreditation services.
Professor, David Tvildiani Medical University | Chair, Public Health Institute of Georgia | Founder, Accréditation Sans Frontières
