Finance Minister – Georgia Still Maintains Leading Position in the Region

Minister of Finance of Georgia Ivane Machavariani has made a statement regarding the completion of the IMF Assessment Mission. As he noted, the goals of the current program in Georgia have been successful.

Machavariani noted that the IMF predicts that Georgia will continue to be the leader in the region.

“The Government of Georgia and the National Bank have reached an agreement with the International Monetary Fund on the Fifth Review of the Program in Georgia. Almost three years have passed since the launch of this program, and I would like to say with great satisfaction that we have had successful results, both in terms of improving macroeconomic and fiscal stability and in advancing credit ratings: since launching the program, we have demonstrated our commitment to achieving our core fiscal goals and considering the fact that the program is not over yet, today we can safely say that all three main goals have been achieved successfully. These goals were: 1. Current spending control - Current spending decreased from 25.9 percent in 2016 to 23.3 percent and continues to decline. 2. Accelerating Capital Expenditures - We were able to significantly accelerate capital expenditures. All of these capital expenditures are fully incorporated into our fiscal framework and are fully funded by financial institutions; 3. Deficit Normalization - Our fiscal deficit is steadily within 2.5 percent of GDP. This is a benchmark that indicates that the budget sector is the guarantor of a stable macroeconomic environment in the country. The macroeconomic and fiscal policies supported by the Fund have enabled our economy to cope with the most difficult economic situation in the region. While the region is growing at a rate of less than 1%, we have experienced an average of 5% economic growth throughout this period. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts that Georgia will continue to be the leader in the region. Since 2017, all three rating agencies (Moody's, Fitch and S&P Global) have improved the country's credit rating and we are two steps apart from the investment rating now,” the Minister said.

He added that the fifth review with the IMF has been successfully completed, and an agreement has been reached to extend the IMF's existing program for one year.

By Ana Dumbadze