There is lots of talk about the economy and money and there doesn't seem to be much money circulating around. Orders are down, and some say there is little foreign investment. The main problem is not that there is little foreign investment, it is that those businesses with money in Georgia aren't spending it or putting it in the economy by expanding or establishing new businesses. The reason they aren't doing this is fear.
We the Georgians love venting our political feelings in the street. A street-oriented political life is what makes us feel alive and kicking. Street has its unequaled charm and magic, and power too, used when political concerns and pains have to be gotten off our aching chests. As a matter of fact, we as a nation are politically more natural in the open air than indoors. We are suffocating inside an edifice even if its air is conditioned. We breathe better in the street – the political oxygen is better felt and taken in there. Streets make us feel more liberated where democracy seems healthier and more feasible. Streets are free from governmental duress, cultural conscience, social restrictions, economic plight, political inequity and intellectual responsibility.
Exclusive Interview with Federica Favi, Ambassador of Italy to Georgia
Last week, the Ambassador of Italy to Georgia, H.E. Mrs. Federica Favi held a press conference regarding Embassy’s new visa issuing service. Ambassador Favi spoke to journalists from the offices of Visa Management Service. Due to the deadline, we could not publish it immediately. However, Georgian Journal decided to visit the embassy to conduct a face-to-face interview with Federica Favi, recipient of the prize in the nomination of “the best respondent” at Georgian Journal’s Diplomat Party a month ago at Tbilisi Marriott.
Exclusive Interview with Ex-Minister of Georgia
Salome Zourabichvili, who intends to finalize her decision to present her candidacy for the presidential elections in October of 2013, talked to Georgian Journal and declared that she is “thinking about her candidacy for the next presidential election as an independent candidate”. At the same time, she denied rumors about establishing new political party. “I founded one political Party “the Way of Georgia” in 2006, which has kept its line and orientation over these very difficult years and which now continues without me. I have said about the President’s role that he/she should not be identified with one given Party, and should not represent a single Party. I am no longer the leader of my Party, where I have only an honorary title, but would not think about joining another one or creating a nes one. I do not believe in politicians changing parties as they change shirts, which has been a bad habit for some people in Georgian politics.”
Leader of “Industry Will Save Georgia” Gogi Topadze talked to Georgian Journal about the ongoing presidential race and new arrests that changed the layot in Georgian Political life. We offer the interview to our reader:
Criticism against the Party Leader
According to the experts, internal confrontations taking place in the National Movement has all the hallmarks of the irreversible process which is likely to disintegrate once mighty and tightly knit party into isolated shards. They add that the end is nigh, that is, the National Movement will not be able to keep itself intact even by the October Presidential elections. For the same reason, their Presidential hopeful faces harsh prospect of losing the privileged status among his likes from the opposition.
An agreement is reached between Georgian authorities and businessmen in the field of employment contract terms of the draft labor code put under parliamentary procedures at the moment and scheduled to be approved by the end of the spring session.
Very few of reprocessing industry enterprises have availed of preferential agribusiness credits disbursed in frames of the Preferential Agro-Credit Project of the Ministry of Agriculture of Georgia (MOA) within a month of its launch on March 27, 2013. Economic analysts think the reason is the credit program is more tailored to banks’ interests rather than to the agriculture reprocessing industry that should play the first fiddle in agriculture sector revival and development.
Conservative banking policy hinders Georgian economy. According to the influential Standard & Poor’s international rating agency, aside from the political uncertainty, reducing the economic growth-rate in Georgia, is associated with the conservative policy of commercial banks.
The ecological condition of Georgian capital Tbilisi is alarming as the municipality lacks due competence and bases its activity on none-existing strategy for years.
