Social and Economic Policy

15 May 2017

Implementation Assessment of the Georgian Public Procurement Legislation

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the procurement system of Georgia, including problems related to the implementation of the legislation, assess its performance, point out its strengths and weaknesses and provide recommendations on solutions. The paper is based on the assessment of the Public Procurement Legislation of Georgia (PPL) that was conducted within the framework of the project Transparent Public Procurement Rating (TPPR).

15 May 2017

Assessing Public Procurement Legislation and Practice in Eastern Partnership Countries - International Conference

On May 13, IDFI and Open Society Institute Budapest Foundation (OSI) hosted a conference: Assessing Public Procurement Legislation and Practice in Eastern Partnership Countries.

11 April 2017

The IDFI Evaluates New Mechanism of Monitoring of Asset Declarations

Georgian legislation provides for the obligation for public officials to submit their asset declarations annually. Declarations are available on the webpage of the Civil Service Bureau. The system is largely functional. However, there are several shortcomings associated to it. Namely, there is no mechanism in place to verify declared data and identify the cases when inconsistent or deliberately false information is indicated. Which will then result in the liability of public officials.

23 March 2017

Family Support Policy in Georgia

The policy brief looks at Georgia’s demographic problems, its state policy on providing financial and other kinds of assistance to large families, and provides recommendations on how to improve this policy based on international best practices.

23 February 2017

Georgia in 2017 Index of Economic Freedom

Georgia has gained 10 positions in the 2017 Index of Economic Freedom, taking the 13th place in the ranking of 180 countries worldwide and going ahead of all of its neighbors and most European and Post-Soviet countries. In Europe, Georgia took the 5th place and is behind only Switzerland, Estonia, Ireland and Great Britain.

9 February 2017

IDP Families Waiting for Permanent Homes - Limited State Resources or Lack of Political Will

As of January 2017, 37,000 IDP households in Georgia are expecting state assistance. According to the Ministry of Refugees, GEL 1.5 billion is needed to provide these families with permanent housing.

8 December 2016

Georgia-Russia Economic Relations in 2008-2016

The Georgian diaspora living in the Russian Federation is the largest source of remittances for Georgia. Since 2014, this volume of remittances from Russia has decreased significantly, while imports have increased. This has a negative effect on the Georgian economy, including the stability of the national currency.

7 December 2016

Georgia in the 2017 Doing Business Index

According to the Doing Business 2017 report, Georgia is ranked 16th among 190 nations. In the previous year’s report (2016), Georgia held the 24th position among 189 countries. Georgia has improved its positions in many categories, particularly in terms of institutional structure and regulatory environment. However, major weaknesses remain, such as lack of support for research and education by the government and the private sector, and limited use of innovation in business.

29 November 2016

2013 Bonuses and Salary Supplements in the Ministry of Internal Affairs

Public officials in the MIA central office had received bonuses of GEL 2,325,789 in January-October 2013. The Minister of Internal Affairs had received a bonus of GEL 4,335 only once in February. However, most other public officials received monthly bonuses that were much higher than their monthly salary on a monthly basis.

25 November 2016

Negotiations between Georgia and Russian Federation about the World Trade Organization (WTO): 5 Years After

The World Trade Organization (WTO) consists of 164 member states and is established to harmonize and facilitate trade relations, act as a dispute settlement body. Georgia is member of the WTO since July 14, 2000 . It took 18 years for Russia to become member of the WTO .