Irakli Kovzanadze Comments on Georgia's International Rating

“Reforms implemented by Georgia in the Public Funds Management (PFM) have led to the country’s advancement in further significant international ratings” states MP Irakli Kovzanadze, Fiscal Committee Chair of the Parliament of Georgia, when commenting on the results of the Open Budget Index released by the International Budget Partnership (IBP). According to the breaking news, Georgia now ranks 5th among 115 countries of the world, and is listed as an ‘Extensively Transparent Country’ together with New Zealand, Sweden, Norway and South Africa. 

“Open Budget Index is produced by the International Budget Partnership on the grounds of its all-inclusive and comprehensive methodology. It is based on the assessment of independently selected non-government organizations (NGOs), rather than a self-assessment by authorities”, said MP Irakli Kovzanadze, Fiscal Committee Chair of the Parliament of Georgia. 

“Back in 2006, Georgia ranked 42nd with 34 scores in the Open Budget Index, and was listed among countries of limited transparency. Later in 2015, Georgia was listed as a Substantially Transparent Country, with 66 points, and positioned itself at 16th place, while in 2017 it became an Extensively Transparent Country, with 82 points” 

“I wish to list several significant reforms jointly implemented by the Government and Parliament of Georgia in recent years, that made it possible for the country to have an international acknowledgement of its progress through the Open Budget Index. They are as follows: Transition to Program Budgeting; Scrutiny of Fiscal Risks; Improvement of Baseline, Optimistic and Pessimistic Scenarios of Macro-Economic Forecasting; Greater Exposure of the Parliament to Quarterly and Annual Reports of the Government Performance; Increased Public Disclosure of Budget-Related Information and Cycle” said Kovzanadze.