A meeting was held with the participation of representatives from the Ministry of Education, Science, and Youth of Georgia, the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia, and Elsevier, one of the world’s foremost digital international scientific publishing houses.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Science, and Youth of Georgia, Ana Mghebrishvili, and the Director General of the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia, Teimuraz Dochviri, engaged in discussions with Elsevier representatives regarding the ongoing collaboration. The dialogue focused on the current format of cooperation, key achievements, encountered challenges, and future initiatives aimed at enhancing the integration of Georgian researchers into the global scientific community.

The Elsevier delegation included Mr. Kirill Ivanov, Customer Success Manager, and Mr. Bartlomiej (Bartek) Wiekowski, Customer Consultant and Research Data Analyst. From the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia, the meeting was attended by Lali Birtvelishvili - First Deputy Director; Mariam Iashvili - Deputy Head of the Administrative and Legal Department; Mariam Betsiashvili - Deputy Head of the Science Department; and Nino Abuselidze - Specialist of the Science Department.

Elsevier is recognized as one of the largest online international scientific publishing houses, hosting a comprehensive collection of cutting-edge scientific literature, including articles, abstracts, and books.

Since 2014, the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia, through a formal agreement with Elsevier, has been facilitating annual access to Elsevier’s international scientific databases for member organizations of the Georgian research consortium.

This consortium comprises 57 organizations, including authorized public and private higher education institutions in Georgia, the Ministry of Education, Science, and Youth, the Rustaveli Foundation, research centers, the Georgian National Academy of Sciences, the Georgian National Museum, the Georgian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and the Evgeni Kharadze National Astrophysical Observatory. Members of the consortium—students, academic staff, researchers, and administrative personnel—have complimentary access to Elsevier's premier databases, Scopus and ScienceDirect. These platforms enable the download and use of the latest global scientific resources, including articles, books, and book chapters, for research and educational purposes.

The subscription costs are fully covered by the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia.

Following the meeting, Elsevier representatives conducted a specialized training session for consortium member universities on the topic of journal indexing in Scopus. The training addressed several key themes, including:

· The benefits of indexing in Scopus;

· A comprehensive overview of Scopus evaluation procedures and criteria;

· Common pitfalls to avoid during the evaluation process;

· Best practices for preparing journals for Scopus evaluation.

The training session, delivered in English, was attended by representatives of leading Georgian universities.

As part of the sustained collaboration between the Rustaveli Foundation and Elsevier, the Elsevier team regularly organizes online training sessions, workshops, and webinars tailored to the needs of consortium member organizations. The continuation of such initiatives is planned within the framework of this ongoing partnership, further reinforcing the accessibility and utilization of high-quality scientific resources for Georgian researchers.