All eight baobab trees purchased by Bidzina Ivanishvili, the honorary chairperson of Georgia’s ruling party, Georgian Dream, from Kenya have withered after being transplanted in a dendrological park in Georgia. The administration of the park claims that the trees suffered due to delays caused by opposition groups, specifically the United National Movement and affiliated non-governmental organizations. These groups allegedly raised false accusations and created bureaucratic obstacles, significantly delaying the transplantation process.
According to a statement from the dendrological park, the National Movement and its allies in the media launched a campaign against the project, resulting in prolonged delays and improper conditions for the baobab trees, which were uprooted in 2021 but could not be planted in Georgia until November 2023. The park administration blames these delays for the eventual withering of the trees, stating that the baobabs remained uprooted for nearly two years in unsuitable conditions without proper care.
The administration also notes that earlier baobabs transplanted to other parts of Georgia, including Shekvetili and Tbilisi, are still thriving. They attribute the successful transplantation of these trees to the absence of external interference and timely execution of the process.
The controversy surrounding the transplantation of the baobabs from Kenya to Georgia began in the fall of 2022. Environmentalists, particularly from the British publication The Guardian, criticized the project, calling it “biopiracy.”
The export of the baobabs faced legal challenges in Kenya, with local human rights organizations and government bodies raising concerns about the exploitation of local communities and the environmental impact of uprooting the trees. Despite these challenges, the trees were eventually transported to Georgia, but the prolonged delays and unsuitable conditions during the process led to their demise.
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