” All of our nations strive to develop favorable, predictable, business-friendly economies, and this is the path that Georgia has also been pursuing,” said Levan Davitashvili, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development addressing the Tbilisi Silk Road forum.

According to Levan Davitashvili, Georgia matured to be a stable, secure, and trustworthy partner, and the country made it a priority to be attractive and welcoming to foreign investors

“I am proud to say that the forum has constantly served as a significant international platform fostering dialogue among top policymakers, esteemed business representatives, and influential community leaders.

We share the same mission to collectively capitalize on arising opportunities and address the emerging challenges that our nations face. I strongly believe that together we will devise impactful solutions that bolster both our regional and global economies. I wish to emphasize that each country represented here plays a vital role in the development of not only their own economies but also has a significant influence on the well-being and advancement of their adjacent countries and nations along the Middle Corridor.

In this light, allow me to emphasize that cooperation and collaboration between our nations and business communities have never been more important than they are at this stage. All of our nations strive to develop favorable, predictable, business-friendly economies, and this is the path that Georgia has also been pursuing.

Over time, our nation has matured to be a stable, secure, and trustworthy partner. Our positive economic trajectory is the result of a well-devised macroeconomic policy, a set of strategic reforms, and our ambition to align Georgia’s regulatory framework with the EU’s. On this path, we have made it a priority to be attractive and welcoming to foreign investors.

As you might be aware, today, Georgia holds the eighth position in the OECD list restrictive FDI countries index. Although we recognize that reforms are not the final destination, but an ongoing process and acknowledging the desire to further refine our legal framework, we are engaged in drafting a new investment law. The draft, aligned with international best practices, is tailored to stimulate both local and global investments. We also actively focus on reforms in other key policy directions, including further reduction of external vulnerabilities. Increasing national savings and productivity growth, improving private sector competitiveness, and the functioning of the labor market by addressing structural weaknesses, ensuring inclusive access to economic opportunities, enhancing energy security, and supporting connectivity with the European Union.

With this agenda in hand, today, Georgia is an investment destination for lower costs, where lower costs are matched with the reduced risks, a rival business climate, availability of green energy and free trade access to global markets.

And to this point, it’s only commandable that Bloomberg’s 2022 annual global study of foreign direct investment flows highlighted that Georgia stands out as a popular investment destination ranking 13th for investment among major global economies. The numbers, I believe, speak for themselves. Last year, we witnessed a record high foreign direct investments, over two billion U. S. Dollars.

Our exports grew by almost 32% and exceeded six billion U. S. Dollars. Moreover, we are witnessing a continuation of the same trend of record-high FDIs in 2023 with sectors such as financial insurance activities, energy, and manufacturing, dominating the spectrum of FDI inclose, and geography is very wide from many different countries, including the European Union. The tourist sector, with its unparalleled growth trajectory, is a testament to Georgia’s allure as a global travel destination,” he said.