Gov’t creating environment to “encourage entrepreneurship, innovation” - PM

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday addressed the World Government Summit in Dubai. Photo: Government press office

Agenda.ge, 13 Feb 2023 - 13:37, Tbilisi,Georgia

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday told the World Government Summit in Dubai his office was fostering an environment encouraging “entrepreneurship and innovation, attracting investments, creating jobs, and improving the standard of living” for the country’s citizens.

Garibashvili told the Summit the concept of “economic freedom” was “essential” for his country's “development and stability”, and stressed Georgia offered a “compelling value proposition for investors” through a model in which retained earnings were exempt from the Corporate Income Tax.

The summit is running between 13-15 February in Dubai. Photo: Governmnet press office. 

He also pointed to four Free Industrial Zones present in the country, with enterprises operating in these zones and manufacturing goods for export being exempt from taxes. The PM highlighted the outcome as a “competitive environment” for international firms to expand their businesses in the larger region that would reduce their operational costs. 

“In Georgia, companies can take advantage of access to over 2.3 billion potential customers without customs and import tariffs. Georgia has free trade agreements with China, CIS and EFTA countries, and Turkey. In addition, we enjoy the benefits of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the European Union”, he said. 

Garibashvili noted the efforts had contributed to Georgia’s position as an “attractive destination for doing business” by a number of international organisations. 

The Georgian delegation members during the PM's speech. Photo: Government press office. 

He highlighted the Fraser Institute's 2022 Economic Freedom of the World report, which placed the country among the top 15 nations with the “freest economy”, while in the International Budget Partnership’s 2021 Open Budget Survey Georgia was ranked first out of 120 countries in the global ranking in State Budget Transparency. 

In the recent FDI Regulatory Restrictiveness Index of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Georgia was ranked eighth among more than 80 countries as one of the “most open economies” in the world in terms of attracting investments, Garibashvili told Summit participants.

He also noted Georgia’s ranking as 18th in Europe in the Heritage Foundation’s 2022 Index of Economic Freedom - “well ahead of many European Union member states” - with the country listed 26th out of 177 countries around the world.