Georgia’s capital of Tbilisi is hosting the Krynica Economic Forum today, which has gathered together Georgian authorities, presidents of six countries and other high officials.
Generally held in Poland, the Krynica Economic Forum is one of the most famous economic forums in Eastern Europe.
Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili delivered his speech at the forum this morning, where he thanked all guests who arrived in Georgia to join the country in its celebration of the 100th anniversary from the creation of the first Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1918.
To note, presidents of Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Latvia, Finland, Armenia and the European Commission are visiting Georgia to join May 26 celebrations.
At the forum Kvirikashvili spoke about recent developments of Georgia and how the country is positioned in international rankings.
He said that Georgia is small but an open country with a liberal market and business friendly environment. Kvirikashvili stated that Georgia’s goal was to become the regional hub as its geographical location and maritime, railway, air and logistic potential all give the country a chance to achieve this goal.
Georgia's Economy Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Finance Minister, Agriculture Minister attending the forum. Photo: PM's press office.
As of today we already have free trade agreements with the European Union, China, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Turkey and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries. Currently we are negotiating with India, Hong Kong and Israel to establish a free trade regime”, Kvirikashvili said.
Several days ago I was honoured to host 10 executive directors of the World Bank. They supported the ongoing and planned economic reforms of Georgia. The International Monetary Fund also praises the indicators of Georgia’s economic growth. Georgia completed the year 2017 with five percent economic growth … while in the first quarter of 2018 the average economic growth reached 2.5 percent”, Kvirikashvili said.
In 2017 Georgia attracted almost $900 million in foreign direct investments, which is a historic high indicator”, Kvirikashvili added.
Kvirikashvili said that all these developments are a firm basis for fulfilling all the obligations taken by the government and to maintain successful progress in the implementation of reforms.
He expressed his hope that the Krynica Economic Forum will be a new platform for using the opportunities Georgia creates.