Tbilisi Hosts Georgia & World 2019 Economic Conference
On January 29-30, Tbilisi is hosting a two-day Economic Conference – Georgia and the World 2019, at Tech Park (TechnoPark), under the aegis of the World 2019 annual edition of The Economist.
The conference aims to examine Georgia’s progress in numerous fields and the current position of the country’s economy, consider the future challenges the country may face on the pathway of development, and discuss existing opportunities in the working environs. The event brings together more than 100 delegates, including the representatives of the Government of Georgia, international organizations, the diplomatic corps, the business sector and academic circles.
The agenda of the conference comprises a number of panels, with speakers and guests of honor discussing, among other themes: Georgia’s potential towards integration into the global economy; Innovative reforms in the financial sector; Georgia’s tourism potential: new markets and tourism; and product diversification.
The Prime Minister of Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadze addressed the audience of the conference earlier today. He also answered questions of The Economist’s ‘The World in 2019’ Georgian edition by George Sharashidze, publisher of Georgia Today newspaper, official license of The Economist in Georgia, and spoke about what he considers areas of paramount importance. The PM also talked about the strategies and aspirations of the country, noting as he did that even though Georgia has made multiple steps forwards in accelerating the process of development, a number of major problems, including poverty, still remain. Bakhtadze spoke about the country’s desire to become the region’s economic hub and summarized the fruitful outcomes of the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland. He accentuated the significance of an education-based economy and human resources.
“Our society, our citizens are our country's main asset. I have pointed out repeatedly that our economic policy will enable us to reduce poverty in the country, but we will never be able to advance Georgia to the category of developed economy unless we as a state invest heavily in the education sector to transform it into the dominant component of our economy as a whole,” he stated.
A welcome speech was also delivered by the honorary guest of the Economic Conference, Henrik Hololei, Director-General for Mobility and Transport at the EU Commission.
By Ketevan Kvaratskheliya
Image source: Government of Georgia