The updated Animal Identification and Traceability System (AITS), which records information regarding large and small ruminants and their keepers all around the country, is now fully operational.

The animal identification and registration program has been accessible in Georgia since 2012. However, from 2015, as a co-founded financial endeavour of the Swiss Development Agency (SDC) and Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC), FAO has re-designed and developed the new Animal-Identification and Traceability System – the AITS. 

This recently-released programme saves veterinarians’ time and effort, as it allows users  to record all data collected on household levels directly into an electronic database instead of paper forms. In addition, the programme serves as an important part of the food safety chain puzzle, as the former guarantees the traceability of animal and animal origin products in a prompt and timely manner. 

The updated system was piloted in the Kakheti region in 2019. Simultaneously, 600 veterinarians  were trained in the necessary skills to effectively use the system by the National Food Safety Agency(NFA). A total of 588 veterinarians are currently working with the system, managing up to a million registered animals.

To support veterinarians’ needs,  FAO has organized a help desk to aid users with any technical difficulties. The system updates on a daily basis, and consists of not only an identification and registration module, but also modules for laboratories and border and abattoir controls. 

Laptops, Chromebooks, smartphones, printers and high capacity servers were given to the NFA in order to support the proper functioning of the programme. During the same accounting period, an AITS communication campaign dedicated to food safety and zoonotic diseases has also been active

FAO NAITS project manager Mikheil Sokhadze states that the implementation of the system is an opportunity for Georgia to strengthen export capacities with the European Union.  

“NAITS uses and includes the best field and theoretical practices of the EU and EU candidate countries. Experts from France, the UK and Switzerland – as well as professionals from countries that have a comparable background to Georgia, such as North Macedonia and the Baltic states – have been involved in the development process of the programme. These efforts have paid off, and today the system is fully in line with EU standards,” says Sokhadze.