Georgia 35th in Heritage Foundation’s Economic Freedom Index, ranked ahead of 11 EU states
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili said the country continued to make “impressive strides in international comparison”. Photo: Shalva Papuashvili’s Facebook account
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Georgia has been ranked 35th among 184 countries in the Economic Freedom Index of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation think-tank, with the country placed ahead of 11 European Union member states and all candidate countries aspiring for membership in the bloc.
With a total score of 68.7, Georgia was ranked 21st out of 44 countries in the Europe region, with its overall score well above the world and regional averages, the Foundation said in its Index, published earlier this week.
Responding to the results, Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said the country continued to make “impressive strides in international comparison”, and stressed high scores in judicial effectiveness and the Government integrity had demonstrated the Georgian authorities` “commitment” to the rule of law.
Georgia continues to make impressive strides in international comparison, ranking 35th in @Heritage's 2023 Economic Freedom Index, ahead of 11 EU member countries & all candidate countries. Our high scores in judicial effectiveness & govt integrity show our commitment to the RoL. pic.twitter.com/lrK2LCTsRO
— Shalva Papuashvili ???????? (@shpapuashvili) March 15, 2023
Published annually, the conservative think-tank’s Index covers 12 freedoms – from property rights to financial freedom – in 184 countries, grouped into four broad categories that include rule of law, Government size, regulatory efficiency and open markets.
In its 29th edition of the index, the Heritage Foundation said Georgia was considered a “moderately free” economy that performed “quite well in some key policy areas”.
Notable reforms to enhance regulatory efficiency have been implemented, and open-market policies are maintained along with low tax rates. The economy has demonstrated a high level of resilience. Persistent institutional weaknesses require much more committed reforms”, the Foundation said.
Singapore, Switzerland, Ireland, Taiwan and New Zealand have ranked in the top five in this year's ranking.
Following the double-digit growth of the Georgian economy in the first eight months of the year, the World Bank has raised its 2022 economic growth forecast for the country from the previously projected 5.5 percent to 8.8, the highest in the Europe and Central Asia region.
The Georgian Government is aiming to achieve the country being listed in the top five of all major global rankings in the coming years, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told the Parliament on Wednesday.
Georgia’s economic freedom score is 77.2, making its economy the 12th freest in the 2021 Index of Economic Freedom by the Heritage Foundation. "Its overall score has increased by 0.1 point, primarily because of an improvement in the government spending score. Georgia is ranked 7th among 45 countries in the Europe region, and its overall score is above the regional and world averages", reads the index.
Georgia has debuted at Kearney’s Global Services Location Index (GSLI) 2021 and took 19th place among the top-ranked countries to source tech services, announces the export promotion agency Enterprise Georgia.
The Economic Freedom Index of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation think-tank has featured Georgia among the top 40 countries in the world for Government integrity, placing it ahead of 15 member states of the European Union and NATO.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday said his country’s “impressive leap” from 54th to 17th in the latest Transparency in the Time of War Index was “another evidence” the European Union’s refusal to grant Tbilisi its membership candidate status last year had been “far from [being] a merit-based decision”.