Enterprise Georgia 2019 report and future projects
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Friday, January 24
According to the Agency's Director Mikheil Khidureli, 359 enterprises launched in 2014-2019 with the support of Enterprise Georgia, 85 of which were funded in 2019. In addition, more than 13,000 new jobs were created during the reporting period. As part of the hotel component of the program, 136 hotels were funded in the regions of Georgia in 2016–2019, adding 3850 new hotel rooms to the country's tourism sector and creating more than 3,000 new jobs. As for the development component of the film industry, 31 projects were implemented in 2016-2019 and 17400 temporary jobs were created.
After the events of June 20, 2019, the stoppage of regular flights from Russia has greatly affected small and family hotels in Georgia. To support them, a co-financing mechanism has been set up to support the small and family industries. According to Khidureli, the program funded 177 applications during September - December 2019.
According to the agency director, in 2020 the program structure has changed and it has become more focused on the needs of small and medium-sized businesses in the regions as new sectors are added, including the development of balneological resorts, fishing, ceramic manufacturing, tourism services and more.
Khidureli emphasized another priority field- export and its promotion. In 2019, with the help of the Agency, 120 Georgian companies participated in 16 international exhibitions. In addition, the agency systematically organizes training for export managers. About 263 export managers used this service in 2014–2019. By 2020, the agency plans to develop the trading platform: www.tradewithgeorgia.com.
The presentation also focused on the Agency's strategy for attracting investment in 2020-21 and ways to implement it. As a result of this strategy, 3500 new jobs will be created in the next 2 years, along with many other benefits, in the highest paid, prospective sectors. The document was prepared using the methodology of IFC (International Finance Corporation) and the international experts were involved as well. It reflects the stage of Georgia's development when it is possible to attract more high-tech, knowledge-based and strategically important investments in the country.
“Changes have been made to the program since 2020 and new priority areas have been identified. Its vector will be focused on supporting economic development and business projects in the regions. Following the change, the program will be more tailored to the contemporary demands and challenges facing our country today,” noted Turnava.
According to the Economy Minister, Enterprise Georgia is one of the most successful programs to stimulate entrepreneurship and within the program, several hundred enterprises have been operational since 2014 and thousands of new jobs have been created.