COUNTRY FOCUS
Georgia on my mind – where beauty meets business BRUNO BALVANERA Director for the Caucasus, Moldova and Belarus European bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
Published on April 21, 2017
Georgia has progressed immensely over the last two decades.
Georgia is a beautiful country, blessed with a favourable location at the crossroads between Western Asia and Eastern Europe. Bordering Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkey and with access to the sea, Georgia has good transportation links with the entire region and beyond, and it enjoys a free trade agreement with Turkey and the CIS countries as well as an Association Agreement with the EU. Georgia has progressed immensely over the last two decades. The country undertook significant changes to eradicate crime and corruption, to reform the state administration and to adopt a market economic model. As a result, Georgia has become the top reformer in the wider region, according to EBRD and the World Bank rankings, as well as the Index of Economic Freedom by the US think tank Heritage Foundation. The Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement
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with the EU marked a further step towards integration and successful development. These agreements and the prospects of free trade with the EU offer unique opportunities for Georgia’s economy. The country is progressing down this ambitious path in order to reap the benefits and realise the full potential of the economy by accelerating reforms, strengthening institutions and improving the investment climate. These economic reforms are supported by ambitious plans for achieving a more equal income distribution, for developing human capital and skills, reducing unemployment and providing stability and sustainable development. A third wave of reforms in Georgia focuses on strengthening institutions, developing the infrastructure, encouraging competition and adopting international best practices in all areas of economic development. The EU Association Agreement serves as framework,