Economic Press Monitor November 13 - 19, 2022	Days:  05 12 19 26 03

economic & politics

TABULA: “WORLD BANK’S 2022 STUDY ON EDUCATION CRISIS IN GEORGIA”

November 17, 2022 - In Georgia, state funding of the education sector increased from 2.8% of GDP in 2006 to 3.6% in 2019.

At the same time, the World Bank (WB) study of 2022 (Georgia Human Capital Review) showed that in Georgia, the share of adolescents aged 10, who cannot read and understand written text after completing the primary stage of education, makes up 14%.




NETGAZETI.GE: “IT WILL BE COMICAL THAT THE REGISTER OF OLIGARCHS WILL BE COMPILED BY GARIBASHVILI – GOTSIRIDZE”

November 17, 2022 - Roman Gotsiridze, MP from the opposition National Movement, criticizes amendments to the bill “On De-Oligarchization”, according to which the register of oligarchs will be compiled by the government of Georgia.

Originally initiated version of the bill assigned responsibility for compiling a special register to the Parliament.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: ““IN CASE OF NATIONAL MILITARY PRODUCTION, NEXT PRIORITY OF THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT WILL BE COMMERCIALIZATION OF GEORGIAN PRODUCTION””

November 16, 2022 - Juansher Burchuladze, Georgia’s Defense Minister, reported that Georgian armed forces already received armored vehicles, manufactured by the Georgian state military scientific and technical center Delta. In near future, the armed forces will get also 8 medical evacuation armored vehicles, he noted.




NETGAZETI.GE: “INSTEAD OF THE PARLIAMENT, REGISTER OF OLIGARCHS COULD BE DRAWN UP BY THE GOVERNMENT”

November 16, 2022 - Anri Okhanashvili, chairman of Georgian Parliament’s Legal Issues Committee, offered to MPs to assign the government responsible for compiling the register of oligarchs.

Okhanashvili declared this on November 15, upon consideration of the draft law “On De-Oligarchization” in second hearing at the plenary session of the Parliament.

macroeconomics & budget

TABULA: “WHAT EFFECT DO REMITTANCES FROM RUSSIA HAVE FOR GEORGIAN ECONOMY IN THE SHORT AND LONG TERM?”

November 18, 2022 - In February-September, remittances from Russia to Georgia totaled to $1.11 billion.

What the funds transferred from Russia are spent for, one can only assume, the article notes.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “FINANCE MINISTER: EFFECTIVENESS OF TAX BENEFITS NEEDS TO BE STUDIED”

November 18, 2022 - Georgia’s Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili declared that work is underway on reform of tax costs. Tax benefits are important potential resource of the budget, and effectiveness of these benefits needs to be studied, he said.




FORBES GEORGIA: “GEORGIA RANKS 141^ST IN THE WORLD IN TERMS OF GOVERNMENT DEBT”

November 16, 2022 - In October, the IMF projected that debt of the Georgian government by the end of 2022 will make up 39.8% of GDP.

According to this indicator of the debt burden, Georgia is on the 141^st place among 188 countries, the magazine reports.

energy, oil & gas

BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “THIS YEAR, VIOLATIONS HAVE BEEN FOUND TO 11 THOUSAND CONSUMERS OUT OF 300 THOUSAND ONES – “TBILISI ENERGY””

November 17, 2022 - David Balavadze, a representative of Tbilisi Energy (Tbilisi gas distribution company), reported that this year, violations have been revealed to 11,000 consumers out of total number of 300,000.

“Our specialists deinstalled this year 11,000 such gas devices that caused danger to people’s lives”, Balavadze said.




REZONANSI: “IN ORDER TO SUPPLY ELECTRICITY TO EUROPE WRAPPED IN CRISIS, LARGE ENERGY PROJECTS ARE PLANNED IN GEORGIA”

November 15, 2022 - It is planned to build a cable along the bed of the Black Sea, which will allow Georgia to export up to 1,000 MW of electricity to Europe, the newspaper indicates.

David Mirtskhulava, former energy minister in the government of Eduard Shevardnadze, says that a feasibility study of the project is currently underway.




NETGAZETI.GE: “WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT ON TRANSPORTATION OF 1.5M T OF OIL VIA BAKU-TBILISI-CEYHAN – KAZAKH PRIME MINISTER”

November 14, 2022 - Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov declared that from January 2023 Kazakhstan will start export of 1.5 million t of oil via Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline. The issue of further growth of export to 6-6.5 million t is being also considered, he noted.

companies

FORBES GEORGIA: “WITH SUPPORT OF “SAKARTVELOS BANKI”, SHOPPING CENTER “ZUGDIDI MALL” COMPLYING WITH INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS WAS OPENED”

November 18, 2022 - A shopping center was opened in the center of Zugdidi (Samegrelo – Zemo Svaneti region of Georgia). Total cost of the project makes up $8.5 million, $6.1 million of which was allocated by Sakartvelos Banki (Bank of Georgia).




TABULA: “WITH SUPPORT OF “SAKARTVELOS BANKI”, “INN DEVELOPMENT” IS BUILDING TWO RESIDENTIAL COMPLEXES”

November 15, 2022 - Inn Development is building a residential complex with a total area of 33,000 square m in the Digomi district of Tbilisi. Total cost of the project makes up $12 million, $10 million of which was allocated by Sakartvelos Banki (Bank of Georgia).




FORBES GEORGIA: “WITH THE ABKHAZIAN PACE”

November 15, 2022 - The magazine publishes a lengthy interview with businessman Khvicha Makatsaria, who was born and started his business activity in Abkhazia (occupied by Russia now), then continued it in Russia, while in 2008 returned to Georgia.

The businessman’s Georgian assets include shares in TELASI and TELMICO (Tbilisi energy company), Tbilisi Energy (Tbilisi gas distribution company), VEON Georgia (Beeline, mobile operator), Black Sea Product (implementing a project on construction of a new port on the Black Sea coast of Georgia, near Supsa), etc.




TABULA: “CRYPTO BARON, WHO MET WITH PRIME MINISTER A FEW MONTHS AGO, LOST $16B IN A WEEK”

November 14, 2022 - On November 11, crypto exchange FTX of Sam Bankman-Fried (aka SBF) declared bankruptcy.

Tabula reminds that just in February, SBF considered with Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili the prospects of launching a regional office of crypto-currency exchange in Georgia.




FORBES GEORGIA: “WITH SUPPORT OF “SAKARTVELOS BANKI”, “MONOLITH GROUP” BUILDS A RESIDENTIAL COMPLEX IN KRTSANISI”

November 14, 2022 - Monolith Group is building a new residential complex in Krtsanisi district of Tbilisi. Total cost of the project makes up $19 million, $13.5 million of which was allocated by Sakartvelos Banki (Bank of Georgia).

transport & communications

BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “FROM FEBRUARY, DIRECT FLIGHTS BETWEEN RUSSIA AND GEORGIA MAY BE RESUMED”

November 17, 2022 - Giorgi Kodua, founder of Air Georgia, declared that direct flights between Russia and Georgia might be resumed from February next year.

“We have not heard official statements, but Russian travel companies have told us to prepare”, Kodua said on the air of Formula TV company.

finances & banking

TABULA: ““SAKARTVELOS BANKI”: “GOOGLE PAY” IS IN GEORGIA AND IS ALREADY AVAILABLE TO OUR CLIENTS”

November 16, 2022 - The contactless payment system Google Pay is already available to clients of Sakartvelos Banki (Bank of Georgia).

For those clients, who use Android, Sakartvelos Banki has created an application – Tskapp, which will be completely replaced now by Google Pay, said Archil Gachechiladze, director general of the bank.