Green Biz 2014

C M Y K

The FINANCIAL

A total amount of GEL 15 million will be spent on renovating parks and squares,

planting trees and greening Tbilisi this year by the Ecol-ogy and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall. This year’s budget is slightly decreased

compared to in 2013 (GEL 17 million) and increased in com-parison to in the year 2012 (GEL 12 million). This year, the Ecology and Greenery De-partment of Tbilisi City Hall is not going to start implement-ing any large scale project be-cause of the limited budget, according to Giorgi Korkashvi-li, Director of the Department.

© 2014 The FINANCIAL. INTELLIGENCE BUSINESS PUBLICATION WRITTEN EXPRESSLY FOR OPINION LEADERS AND TOP BUSINESS DECISION-MAKERS

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See on p. 9

28 April, 2014

Will Georgia lose old mates if/when it joins NATO?

MERAB PACHULIAGORBI

In this column, we discuss a key issue that is vital to any country in the world – population size. One the most tried and true

tools for accurately measuring population size, is the census. Mentioned as far back as the Bi-ble, censuses were implemented in empires from ancient Egypt to China, with Georgia no ex-eception. If we focus just on the Soviet experience, 6 censuses were conducted (in 1926, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979 and 1989). Actually there was one more, administered in 1937, but it was scrapped after revealing results that did not seem to fit in with the official reality propagated by the country’s Marxist regime. The population was a stagger-ing 8-10 million smaller than previously declared. Also, on the behest of Stalin, a question about religion was added that had devastating answers - 50% of the Soviet Union’s population in large cities and 70% of popu-lation in rural areas admitted to believing in God.

Apr 26 Apr 19

1 USD 1.7617 1.75301 EUR 2.4348 2.4262100 RUB4.9153 4.88501 TRY 0.8270 0.8232

CURRENCIES

Be energy efficientwith ProCredit Bank!

The FINANCIAL

ProCredit Bank Georgia is continu-ing its efforts to establish a sustain-able approach to

energy efficiency and the environment. Within this framework, the Bank has im-plemented in-house energy and resource efficiency mea-sures, which apply to both the technology used in the institution and the behaviour of staff.

Minister: “Fines for environmental damage amounted to GEL 6,748,368”

The FINANCIAL

Changing the attitude of citizens towards the environment is the longest and most difficult process to

carry out, as the experience of various countries has shown. Georgians have to move from a consumer-oriented attitude to-

wards an attitude of care. Fines for violation of the environ-mental law and environmental damage in Georgia during 2013 amounted to GEL 6,748,368. The positive news is that the pri-vate sector has recently started conducting more activities in environmental protection.

See on p. 6

See on p. 2

See on p. 9

See on p. 8

See on p. 7

See on p. 3

The Mystery of the Russian Economy

by OLGA AZHGIBETSEVA and YAROSLAVA BABYCH

ISET Policy Institute

Until very recently Russia was con-sidered by many foreign companies a somewhat dif-

ficult but promising country for investment, a “land of op-portunity” that perhaps neces-sarily came with a hefty dose of a “riddle wrapped in mys-tery inside of an enigma”. The difficulty was stemming pri-marily from Russia’s heavy-handed bureaucracy. Stories of corrupt practices, politically motivated court decisions and questionable tax authorities’ tactics abounded. While this may have scared off smaller investors, the large companies are typically no strangers to such challenges. Heartened by the rise of the Russian middle class, which was seen both as a source of profits and an engine for change, the West had hoped that the Russian state would in time transform into a modern, innovation and competition driven economy.

Tbilisi to Go Green with a Smaller Budget in 2014

About GEL 40,000 Spent Annually on Keeping Tbilisi Zoo Green

Germans on Doing Business in Georgia

GREEN BUSINESS SPONSORED BY:GREEN

BUSINESS

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28 April, 2014

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April was a special month for many Georgians. The Great Lent came to an end, and, after 40 days of

fasting, Georgian families started preparing for Easter Sunday. In addition to decorating eggs, most families cooked traditional Geor-gian dishes, including delicious khachapuri, to be served on the festive Easter “supras”.

With the demand for meat and dairy products peaking just prior to Easter, the price of cheese shot up, “positively” affecting the Khachapuri Index. The average April cost of cooking one standard portion of Imeretian khachapuri reached 3.34 GEL, which is 5.8 % higher compared to March, and 12.8% higher than in April of last year.

Interestingly enough, the price of cheese (and Khachapuri index) behaved differently across differ-ent Georgian cities. While Kutaisi and Telavi experienced rather dramatic increases in the price of cheese (by 31.6 % and 10.8%, respectively), Tbilisi and Batumi continued to benefit from price

declines that are normal for this time of the year, -4.5% and -4.4%, respectively. We’ll come back to this puzzle in our future columns.

It is important to point out that the Easter effect on cheese prices can only be captured during the

two week period around Easter. Beyond this period, prices follow the downward trajectory driven by the annual production cycle of milk and dairy products. As shown on the chart, the Khacha-puri index was not able to cap-

ture the Easter effect in 2013. This happened because last year’s Easter Sunday “fell through the cracks”. It happened on March 31, two weeks after we conducted our March survey and two weeks be-fore the April survey.


KHACHAPURI INDEX IS UP 5.8% IN APRIL 2014 AS GREAT LENT ENDS

by OLGA AZHGIBETSEVA and YAROSLAVA BABYCH

ISET Policy Institute

Until very recently Rus-sia was considered by many foreign compa-nies a somewhat dif-ficult but promising

country for investment, a “land of opportunity” that perhaps neces-sarily came with a hefty dose of a “riddle wrapped in mystery inside of an enigma”. The difficulty was stemming primarily from Rus-sia’s heavy-handed bureaucracy. Stories of corrupt practices, po-litically motivated court decisions and questionable tax authorities’ tactics abounded. While this may have scared off smaller investors, the large companies are typically no strangers to such challenges. Heartened by the rise of the Rus-sian middle class, which was seen both as a source of profits and an engine for change, the West had hoped that the Russian state would in time transform into a modern, innovation and competi-tion driven economy.

Yet, the events of just a month ago, when Russia carried out the occupation and annexation of the Crimean peninsula under the claim of defending the life of Rus-sians in Ukraine, and the current threats of military invasion in the Eastern Ukraine seem to be put-ting these hopes on hold. What do military ambitions have to do with economic policy? The link is more direct than seems at first.

In this two-part article, we will explore the evolution of the Rus-sian economy from the Soviet times until the present day. We will try to pinpoint the specific complex challenges facing the Russian economy, and how much the country’s economy is still bound by its Soviet legacy.

MAIN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL INDICATORS

Just how well do Russian peo-ple live? With the GDP of $2.6 bil-lion, the Russian economy stands in the 6th place in world ranking. Taking into account a huge popu-lation (146 million) of the world’s biggest country, with GDP per capita $17.884, Russia’s standing

drops to 58th place. According to World Bank es-

timates, the shadow economy accounts for about 40 % of GDP (World Bank, 2007). In addition, Transparency International’s cor-ruption perception index ranks Russia as 127 out of 177 coun-tries, in between Pakistan and Bangladesh. Russia is also in the 61st place (out of 142) by the 2013 Legatum Prosperity Index. As the index also suggests, 78.6% of people believe that corruption in business and government is wide-spread.

Some other indicators of living standards are not very encour-aging either. In terms of income inequality Russia is doing worse than nearly all OECD countries excepting Mexico and the United States. As far as wealth inequal-ity, the discrepancy between the rich and the poor in Russia looks

quite dismal. Currently, Russia stands in 3rd place worldwide by the number of billionaires in the country, and these billionaires, 110 people all in all, control 35% of the nation’s wealth. To compare, billionaires worldwide account for only 1-2% of household wealth. In the US, a country characterized by a relatively large wealth gap, 40% of the country’s wealth is con-trolled by 3.17 million people.

Still, despite all these problems Russian is the largest country in the world, extremely rich in natu-ral resources. It accounts for about 20 percent of the world’s produc-tion of oil and natural gas and has significant reserves of both. Moreover, Russia has reserves of almost all industrially important non-fuel minerals. With such large potential at hand, can Russia be doing better economically? If yes, why is the country not better off? Why, for example, the num-ber of people dissatisfied with the status quo kept growing in recent years, necessitating the very tough anti-protest laws in Russia?

Some experts named “Dutch disease” as one of the main prob-lems of the Russian economy to-day. The oil and gas sectors ac-count for around 70% of export and 50% of government revenues. The currency appreciation from oil and gas sector expansion made the country’s other exports too ex-pensive to compete on the global market.

Continued on p. 6

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More than 67 Million Americans to Attend at Least One Wedding in 2014

The FINANCIAL

More than 67 million Ameri-cans plan to attend at least one wedding this year, and they expect to pony up more money to attend, according to

the latest American Express Spending & Sav-ing Tracker.

This year, guests expect to spend an av-erage of $592, up 10% from last year and a staggering 75% jump from 2012, with most of the budget going to travel & accommodations ($308) and special attire and accessories ($164). Guests are not the only ones splurg-ing: although most couples still vie to keep wedding costs under control (72% vs. 74% in 2013), many will spend a little more to do a little less as the DIY trend declines, down 5 percentage points from last year, according to American Express Company.

As the cost to attend weddings rises, spending on wedding gifts is also climbing. Most guests will spend an average of $109 per gift this year, on par with last year ($108) and up 16% since 2012 ($94). If the recipient is a close family member, the average cost of a gift doubles to $200, up 20% from 2012.

Similar to last year, a third of consum-ers (33%) will purchase these gifts from the couple’s registry, while another third (33%) will give money. Cash continues to be the preferred gift to receive for 55% of couples, up from 52% in 2013, according to American Express Company.

Wedding party attendants will spend even more, shelling out $618 on average, up 64% since 2012. For bridesmaids, 78% will pur-chase a new dress, though nearly three quar-ters (74%) say they won’t wear it again. In-stead, nearly half (49%) will opt to give the dress to a second hand store or give away to a friend while just over one in five bridesmaids will allow the dress to take up space in their closets (23%).

Wedding guests have high expectations for this year’s celebrations, agreeing that deli-cious food is the most important component to a great wedding (70%). This is an increas-ing trend over the last three years (67% in 2013, 62% in 2012), according to American Express Company.

Global Automotive Demand: Spotlight on China

The FINANCIAL

Move over men, Chinese wom-en are an equal force to reckon with when it comes to buying a car. In the next two years, 45 percent of female Chinese

respondents plan to buy, compared with 55 percent who will be male, making for a near-even split by gender, according to the Nielsen Company.

For one-fifth (21%) of all Chinese respon-dents, this will be their first automotive pur-chase, compared with nearly three-fourths (73%) who already own a car. Among exist-ing car owners, 89 percent plan to buy new, compared with only 1 percent who plan to buy used.

If you want to capture the purchase intent of Chinese car buyers, connect with their hearts. The strongest purchase motivator (aside from financial) is the love of driving (89%), followed by the need for status (79%) and utility (71%), according to the Nielsen Company.

For six out of 10 (60%) Chinese respon-dents, online ad platforms are the most help-ful in their paths to purchase, followed by TV (45%), magazines and mobile (both 34%). To measure the effectiveness of TV advertis-ing in communicating to potential consumers, a recent Nielsen study analyzed a number of automotive brands and their ads to understand how real TV viewers remember the ads to which they were exposed. In China, 30 percent remembered the ad, and of them, 47 percent remembered the brand, for an overall ad im-pact of 14 percent, according to the Nielsen Company.

OTHER FINDINGS INCLUDE:

Insight into who potential car buyers are, where they live, and how to appeal to them.

Global trends in auto alternatives.Quick-reference country scorecards for: In-

dia, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia, Turkey, the U.S. and Germany.

The FINANCIALBy MADONA GASANOVA

Changing the at-titude of citizens towards the en-vironment is the longest and most

difficult process to carry out, as the experience of various countries has shown. Geor-gians have to move from a consumer-oriented attitude towards an attitude of care. Fines for violation of the en-vironmental law and environ-mental damage in Georgia during 2013 amounted to GEL 6,748,368. The positive news is that the private sector has recently started conduct-ing more activities in envi-ronmental protection.

“The practice of developed countries shows that a coun-try’s long-term economic development is impossible without meeting certain en-vironmental standards. It is important to avoid the nega-tive consequences of a de-graded environment. This will help to avoid state ex-penses in the future that will be necessary for restoring a degraded environment,” Khatuna Gogaladze, Minis-ter of the Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia, told The FINAN-CIAL.

Q. How would you es-timate the year 2013 in terms of environment

protection in Georgia?A. The reorganization

of the Ministry and its in-stitutional and functional strengthening has been one of the most important steps during 2013. The central of-fice of the Ministry, as well as its subordinated institutions, has strengthened significant-ly. LEPL - National Forest Agency, LEPL - Basic Sapling Economy, LEPL - Center for Environmental Information and Education and sub-insti-tution the Department of En-vironment Supervision, were all created / restored under the system of the Ministry.

The Ministry started regu-lating the nuclear and radia-tion safety measures. Forest policy, land resource protect-ing and anthropogenic threat managing structural units were implemented in the cen-tral office.

This institutional change has been reflected in the state budget law. In accor-dance, budgetary funds have doubled. The Ministry also strengthened in terms of hu-man resources. There are more than 2,200 employees at the Ministry and LEPLs.

Q. What are the main problems that Georgia

faces in regard to envi-ronmental protection?

A. The sector has largely been ignored over the years. Its importance has not been estimated accordingly. All this has meant that numerous problems have accumulated, including the legal frame-work and absence of qualified staff. If we look at the field as a whole, the wrong practice of forest management should be noted. It resulted in the degradation of forest area. Pollution (especially in some particular areas) and insuffi-ciently effective mechanisms of its prevention and mitiga-

tion should also be noted. An inadequate observation net-work and lack of information are also a significant obstacle in making correct decisions. These are just examples. A number of steps have been taken in line with solving these problems and the Min-istry continues to work in this direction.

Q. What is the budget of the Ministry for 2014 and what are your pri-orities?

A. The budget of the Min-istry amounted to GEL 31 million. Out of this sum GEL 4,200,000 are grants. In ad-

dition we have our own in-come from various LEPLs. It is hard to talk about pri-orities. Every field of environ-mental protection is tightly linked to another. However, I would underline the forest sector, surveillance, waste management, natural disas-ter prevention and strength-ening of monitoring in par-ticular.

Q. During the past year you implemented various preventive mea-sures to avoid negative impacts on the environ-ment. How much did the budget of fines amount to and in which area did we have the most lawbreak-ers?

A. The Department of En-vironmental Supervision de-tected 3,128 cases of environ-mental law violations during 2013. Out of this, 3,007 cases were of administrative viola-tion, and 121 of criminal of-fense.

The fines for the viola-tions of administrative law amounted to GEL 1,740,090. The fines for the violation of the environmental law and environmental damage amounted to GEL 6,748,368. In 2013, most of the cases of lawbreaking (about 45%) were observed in wood trans-portation and illegal forest use.


Khatuna Gogaladze

Ms. Khatuna Gogaladze completed her master’s degree in Public Affairs at the Indiana University, Bloomington, USA as well as in Environmental Sciences and Policy at the Central European University (CEU) Hungary, Budapest. Her first degree comes from Iv. Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Faculty of Biology.Ms. Gogaladze was the ENVSEC National Coordinator in Georgia (OSCE-administered Environment and Security Initiative). Besides she was the Manager of the Aarhus Centre Georgia (OSCE Project). Ms. Gogaladze worked at various positions at the Ministry of Environment Protection of Georgia. She has extensive experience in non governmental sector as a project coordinator and as an independent expert in projects supported by different international organizations.

Continued on p. 8


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green business

The FINANCIALBy MARIAM PAPIDZE

ProCredit Bank Georgia is continuing its efforts to establish a sustainable

approach to energy efficiency and the environment. Within this framework, the Bank has implemented in-house energy and resource efficiency measures, which apply to both the technology used in the institution and the behaviour of staff.

“We pay very close attention to the environmental impact of our activities and make every effort to minimize this impact. In addition, we are actively engaged in various environmental protection measures,” Ioseb Rostomashvili, Head of the Environmental Management Unit, told The FINANCIAL.

The environmental management system used by ProCredit banks is designed especially for financial institutions within the ProCredit group and is based on three core principles. Furthermore, ProCredit is the only bank in Georgia that has an Environmental Management Unit, which is reflection of the bank’s dedication to environmental and social responsibility. This unit is responsible for coordinating the activities related to the three pillars and for ensuring the proper implementation of the bank’s environmental policy. The Environmental Management Unit plays an important role in raising the environmental awareness of staff, clients and the general public. The responsibility of the unit covers not only the development and implementation of the bank’s internal Environmental Management System, but also sets standards for the disbursement of “eco loans” and is involved in the financing and support of projects in energy efficiency.

“ProCredit Bank is putting in place an approach to better understand and improve the sustainability of its own energy use and environmental impact. The new head office, for example, was built using environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient materials, such as special low-emissivity glass, Rockwool insulation, etc. The building is designed to make maximum use of available daylight, thereby reducing energy consumption, and all of the materials used in construction meet EU quality standards. One of the most important tools for managing energy efficiency is the BMS (Building Management System), which regulates the heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting systems in the building. Environmental issues are an essential component of the training provided to ProCredit Bank staff at the local, regional and international level,”

Rostomashvili said. The Bank has implemented

an environmental management system based on continuous assessment of the loan portfolio according to environmental criteria, an in-depth analysis of all economic activities which potentially involve environmental risks, and the rejection of loan applications from enterprises engaged in activities which are deemed environmentally hazardous and appear on our institution’s exclusion list. By incorporating environmental issues into the loan approval process, ProCredit Bank is also able to raise its clients’ overall level of environmental awareness.

ProCredit Bank aims to promote economic development that is as environmentally sustainable as possible. In 2012 the bank introduced a green finance programme consisting of energy efficiency loans for private individuals as well as for businesses. Within this framework, ProCredit Bank offers its clients financial services for investments in energy efficiency (EE), renewable energies (RE) and other environmentally-friendly “green” (GR) projects. The aim of these activities is to decrease the negative impact of our clients’ business activities on the environment and to use its green finance services and approach to increase public awareness and understanding with regard to environmental protection. This initiative also focuses on building relationships with suppliers of environmentally-friendly equipment and services and on encouraging them to offer products which bear energy efficiency labels.

“Since introducing this new approach, ProCredit Bank has been actively cooperating with suppliers and has set up special information stands at their businesses, which provide informational materials about energy efficiency for the public. ECO loans provide support for many different business sectors, such as agriculture and production, in which the introduction of energy-efficient equipment could not only improve efficiency, but also increase the quality of production, thus decreasing the negative impact on environment.

ECO loans can be used by private clients to increase the comfort of their homes and at the same time reduce their utility bills,” said Rostomashvili.

Be energy efficientwith ProCredit Bank!

IOSEB ROSTOMASHVILI, Head of the Environmental Management Unit


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Advertiser: ProCredit Bank. Contact FINANCIAL Ad Dep at [email protected]


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MERAB PACHULIAGORBI

In this column, we discuss a key issue that is vital to any country in the world – population size. One the most tried and true tools for

accurately measuring population size, is the census. Mentioned as far back as the Bible, censuses were implemented in empires from ancient Egypt to China, with Georgia no exeception. If we focus just on the Soviet experience, 6 censuses were conducted (in 1926, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979 and 1989). Actually there was one more, administered in 1937, but it was scrapped after revealing results that did not seem to fit in with the official reality propagated by the country’s Marxist regime. The population was a staggering 8-10 million smaller than previously declared. Also, on the behest of Stalin, a question about religion was added that had devastating answers - 50% of the Soviet Union’s population in large cities and 70% of population in rural areas admitted to believing in God. Such a politically unacceptable outcome resulted in the entire top management of the census being executed and lower level managers sent to the Gulags before a more “appropriate” census was held in 1939. The most recent census in Georgia was conducted in 2002 but from the very beginning it was clear

that the data was going to be of very poor and of questionable quality. Immediately after the fieldwork was completed, GORBI asked a representative sample of the adult population if they had been visited by representatives of Census Department (officially known as the National Statistics Office of Georgia). Around 17% could not recall such a visit! While there is always the reality that some respondents might not remember such visits, the figure was still unacceptably high. I shared this information to my contacts at the Census Department and they all seemed unamused. However, this is a local issue and until the next census is conducted, Georgians will officially remain numbered as 4.4 million. Hopefully the upcoming census – planned for 2015 - will shed some light on the real figures

so we can learn how many citizens are actually living in this country. Another interesting point worth discussing is the major gap between existing census data and voter’s lists. Total figures of adult population from these two official sources differ by as much as 8% or more. As a result, since the 1989 census, and despite numerous government efforts over the years to ascertain the number of eligible voters, both the true size of voters and the number of inhabitants in Georgia remain heavily disputed. This also has serious implications when it comes to weighting of survey data to adjust demographic variables to census statistics. We pollsters have no option but to use official data for these purposes and the irony is that the survey data in many respects is more accurate (depending on sampling procedures

and sample size) compared to what the official data states. Fortunately, sampling frames for surveys are based on probability theory and like gravity, it never ceases to fail in every single country regardless of the nature of their political system. GORBI was the only organization to have correctly predicted the outcome of the 2013 presidential elections, including the placement and percentages of all candidates who gained more than 1% of votes (we disappointed some experts who expected a second round). Of course this was not just us getting lucky; there were two reasons for this: elections were competitive and, rating wise, the top three candidates were in three different weight categories. In most instances, when people asked to estimate anything that is already known and is well

documented, pollsters later assess the public’s knowledge and draw conclusions if/why inconsistencies occurred. This is not true for our case and I can’t tell exactly how close the answers compare to the true size of the Georgian population. Unfortunately however, we do not exceed the oft cited 5 million mark, nothing to say about the almost 11 million mentioned by Ukrainians. It is likely that only in 2015 when the new census data is available, will we most be closer to the average Georgian estimates of 3.71 million, compared to the 4.62 million that Azerbaijanis guessed are living in the country. As a regional hub for partner organizations and international clients, since 2003, GORBI is the only Georgian member of the Gallup International research network to have over two decades of experience in survey research in post-Soviet Union countries, as well as Mongolia and Iraq. All 5 surveys were conducted on a national representative sample of 1,000 respondents aged 15 or older in January 2014; data retains a 3% margin of error, with confidence at 95%. This data was provided exclusively to The FINANCIAL. Please do not visit our site (www.gorbi.com); it is under construction!

Georgia’s Population Size: Neighbors take a GuessChart 1. Question asked to respondents: Can you give me your best guess - how many people, in millions, live in Georgia right now?


Yet, some argue the “Dutch disease” may not be Rus-sia’s most pressing problem. Recent economic literature and reports on this subject, such as the paper “Russian Output Collapse and Recov-ery: Evidence from the Post-Soviet Transition” by Eteri Kvintradze and “Prosperity in depth: Russia. Caught in the Bear Trap” by Clifford G. Gaddy and Barry W. Ickes, suggest that the roots of the mystery of Russian economy go far back into the Soviet days. Russia’s story is a clas-sic “resource curse” story. The case of the country, where economic inefficiencies are stemming from the over-whelming dependence on natural resources, with con-sequences more far-reaching than the Dutch disease.

THE SOVIET ECONOMIC LEGACY

Inefficiency. The Soviet Union tried to develop a ful-ly fledged industrial system largely or completely inde-pendent from the West. This independence, however, came at a price. Gaddy and Ickes

claim that the first indicator of system’s inefficiency was a totally inappropriate al-location of factors. In order not to leave any piece of land without use, the Soviet cen-tral planners built whole cit-ies, with factories and all the necessary infrastructure, in remote and often extremely cold locations. To compare, in Canada and in Alaska, where climates are similar to Rus-sia’s Far East, the population density in severely cold ar-eas is much lower. The main problem with such allocation was the cost of transporting products and inputs between the factories. This was one of the artificially created extra burdens for the economic sys-tem of the Soviet Union – a “bear trap” that continued to affect negatively the develop-ment of modern economic system in Russia.

Another ‘bear trap’ was the Soviet price system. In the ab-sence of market-based price mechanism, the economic exchange was built around the industrial networking among the inter-dependent enterprises. The value of the final goods produced was very often lower than the cost of production implied by the free market economy. When the revenues from production were negative, the state kept

the enterprises afloat by sub-sidizing them. The sizeable resource rents (profits from sales of natural resources) were used to support the inef-ficient industries.

Rent management system. The system of distributing the resource rents did not func-tion in terms of direct subsi-dies – i.e. not taken directly from the revenues of profit-able sectors. The system, as Eteri Kvintradze explains, was much more opaque with the elements of non-mone-tary inter-enterprise transac-tions (NMTs). Under NMTs firms would sell oil and gas as inputs to enterprises at below the market price; they would transfer extra payments for certain orders, or deliver ser-vices to the inefficient enter-prises through intermediar-ies.

Clearly, the main problem of the Soviet economy was the dependence on the resource transfer to inefficient enter-prises, and the consequent “rent addiction” or high de-pendence of the economy on the profitability of the natural resource sector.

Rent addiction. Indeed, the fluctuations in the resource rent value very much affected the development and the sus-tainability of resource depen-dent industrial system in the

Soviet Union. A few crises during the 1970-1990s were related to the decline of world oil/gas prices and the gradual decline of the resource rents. The recent (pre-transition period) decline of resource rents started in the 1980 and culminated eventually in the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989.

The collapse clearly showed that the planned economy with such inefficient rent management system was not viable. After the dissolution of the USSR, Russia started the process of transition towards the market-based economy. How successful were these efforts? Has Russia been close to developing a modern knowledge and innovation-based economic system, or is it still laboring under the bur-den of the Soviet economic legacy? Find out in our fol-low-up article next week.

Continued from p. 2

The FINANCIAL

People who increased the amount of coffee they drank each day by more than one cup over a four-year

period had a 11% lower risk for type 2 diabetes than those who made no changes to their coffee consumption, accord-ing to a new study led by Har-vard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers. In ad-dition, the study found that those who decreased their cof-fee consumption by more than a cup per day increased their type 2 diabetes risk by 17%.

“Our findings confirm those of previous studies that showed that higher coffee con-sumption was associated with lower type 2 diabetes risk,” said Shilpa Bhupathiraju, lead author and research fellow in the Department of Nutrition at HSPH. “Most importantly, they provide new evidence that changes in coffee con-sumption habit can affect type 2 diabetes risk in a relatively short period of time,” Bhu-pathiraju added.

The researchers analyzed data on caffeinated and decaf-feinated coffee, and caffein-ated tea consumption from 48,464 women in the Brigham and Women’s Hospital-based Nurses’ Health Study (1986-2006), 47,510 women in Nurses’ Health Study II (1991-2007), and 27,759 men in the Health Professionals Follow-

up Study (1986-2006). Par-ticipants’ diets were evaluated every four years with a ques-tionnaire, and those who self-reported type 2 diabetes filled out additional questionnaires. A total of 7,269 cases of type 2 diabetes were documented, according to the President and Fellows of Harvard Col-lege.

Results showed that par-ticipants who increased their coffee consumption by more than one cup per day (median change=1.69 cups/day) over a four-year period had a 11% lower risk of type 2 diabetes in the subsequent four years compared to those who made no changes in consumption. (A cup of coffee was defined as eight ounces, black, or with a small amount of milk and/or sugar.) Those who lowered their daily coffee consumption by more than one cup (me-dian change=2 cups/day) had a 17% higher risk for diabetes. Changes in decaffeinated cof-fee consumption and caffein-ated tea consumption were not associated with changes in risk for type 2 diabetes.

“These findings further demonstrate that, for most people, coffee may have health benefits,” said Frank Hu, se-nior author and professor of nutrition and epidemiology at HSPH. “But coffee is only one of many factors that influence diabetes risk. More important-ly, individuals should watch their weight and be physically active,” he added.

Increasing Daily Coffee Consumption May Reduce Type 2 Diabetes Risk

Source: January 2014, GORBI 5 country public opinion survey.


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green business


A total amount of GEL 15 million will be spent on renovating parks and squares,

planting trees and greening Tbilisi this year by the Ecolo-gy and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall. This year’s budget is slightly decreased compared to in 2013 (GEL 17 million) and increased in comparison to in the year 2012 (GEL 12 million). This year, the Ecology and Green-ery Department of Tbilisi City Hall is not going to start implementing any large scale project because of the limited budget, according to Giorgi Korkashvili, Director of the Department.

“Before the budget was ap-proved, we designed a strat-egy for greening Tbilisi in 2014 which needed GEL 18 million to implement. But Tbilisi City Hall was not al-lowed to approve the GEL 18 million budget and accord-ingly, several projects could not be implemented this year. For example, the recon-struction of the Red Garden and the Veteran’s Garden as well as the greening of the Opera Square were all planned. Out of them, only the Opera Square will be re-habilitated. However, we will still design projects for the other two gardens as well. We have already announced a competition for these proj-ects. As a result the projects will be designed and it will be up to the new mayor whether or not to implement them,” said Korkashvili.

Planting 20,000 plants in the centre of Tbilisi and its surrounding areas, reno-vating Vake Park and Bukia Garden, as well as planting windbreakers, are the activi-ties the budget’s money was spent on in 2013, according to the Ecology and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall. Some of the projects that were started in 2013 will be finished in 2014.

“We started the rehabili-tation of Vake Park in 2013, which was the most impor-tant project of that year. The rehabilitation process will be completed at the end of May, 2014. In addition, the Ecology and Greenery Department renovated Bukia Garden. This garden was in a deplorable condition and really needed our attention. Georgian ar-chitects designed a very nice project for Bukia Garden and it was renovated according to this project. The total amount that was spent on the Bukia Garden and Vake Park reno-vations was GEL 3.5 million,” said Korkashvili.

About 10 thousand plants have been planted in Didi Di-gomi to create a windbreaker. “This is a kind of plantation usually made up of one or

more rows of trees planted in such a manner as to pro-vide shelter from the wind. The same windbreaker plants are planted in the Varketili district and on the new high-way which connects Vake and Saburtalo to each other. We have already started green-ing Tbilisi and planting very beautiful flowers in different areas of the city. The Ecology and Greenery Department also took care of the forests which are in the surrounding areas,” he said.

As the online mapping of Tbilisi is an ongoing project, it has still not been properly calculated what percentage of the capital’s territory is actu-ally green. But in 2012, there was in total 270,375 sq.m of green area in the capital, ac-cording to data of the Ecology and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall. The online mapping of Tbilisi will be fin-ished by the end of 2014 and as a result Tbilisi’s green ter-ritories will become visible, according to Korkashvili. He believes that there are now considerably more green ter-ritories in Tbilisi than there were in 2012.

“Today society demands a greener Tbilisi. Whereas years ago no one cared about the environment in which they lived, now it is the oppo-site. However, unfortunately people still do not know how to take care of their city prop-erly it appears. People think that everything should be done by Tbilisi City Hall and they do not feel responsibil-ity towards taking care of the city,” said Korkashvili.

“A lot of money is being spent on restoring newly-built infrastructure in new-ly rehabilitated parks or squares. For example, many people vandalise and destroy benches or rubbish bins. Our department built a basketball court in Vake Park, which was then damaged before it had even opened! Unfortunately we often face such problems. People’s awareness should be increased and they should feel

more responsible about look-ing after their city,” he said.

“I understand that to take care of the environment it is important to have good eco-nomic conditions in the coun-try. When we mention ex-amples of different beautiful and green cities throughout the world, we should consider that all of them are economi-cally strong cities. But at least not destroying what you al-ready have is a task that is very easy and does not require any additional finances,” he added.

The local self-government election will soon be held in Georgia. The new councils of the local government, Sakre-bulo and the Mayor of Tbilisi will be elected on 15 June, 2014. From that time a new team will take care of Tbilisi.

The Ecology and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall has renovated Mziuri, which was one of the most expensive projects as the park covers a very large area, 40 hectares in total. The reha-bilitation of Mziuri Park took GEL 3 million from the bud-get, according to Korkashvili. Another significant project was the renovation of the Bo-tanical Gardens. There were elementary problems to be solved like building benches and providing the park with public conveniences. Finally, the third most important proj-ect was the renovation of Rike Park and European Square, says Korkashvili. “It is a very attractive park for visitors be-cause of its location. In gen-eral, Mziuri is the park most visited by Tbilisians as well as tourists,” he said.

Tbilisi to Go Green with a Smaller Budget in 2014


In total 5,307,015 debit cards were issued in Georgia as of 1 March, 2014, up from 4,246,173 from the same period of

last year. The number of debit cards increased by 20% as of 1 March, 2014, in comparison with the same period of last year. The number is 33.3% more than it was in 2012. The value of transactions reached GEL 814,379,000, up from GEL 652,987,000 or 20% more from March 2013.

The total value of trans-actions amounted to GEL 814,379,000 as of March 2014. The major share, or 81.6%, was withdrawn from ATMs. The remaining 18.3% was spent via POS-terminals and imprinters. Customers did 0.1 percent more of their shopping with card payments in 2014 than in the previous year.

The number of transactions via ATM reached 3,760,014 units as of March 2014, up from 3,055,868 units as of March 2013. 3,391,786 is the number of transactions made through POS terminals in 2014, up from 2,146,731 from the previous year.

Transactions via the inter-net have decreased slightly in 2014. The total value of trans-actions was GEL 33,518,000 down from GEL 33,632,000 as of 1 March, 2013.

A growth of almost 24% was shown in the issuing of credit cards as of March 2014. 1,457,118 units of credit cards were issued in the first two months of 2014, up from 1,110,205 from last year’s data.

Limited access to POS-terminals is the main reason

why over 70% of respondents questioned by The FINAN-CIAL prefer to carry cash. During the last week over 400 cardholders were questioned to find out the main trends of the cashless society.

Card payment is available only at huge stores and while corner shops are dominating on the market, there is no al-ternative for carrying cash.

86% of respondents wel-come cashless economy as it brings them added safety. In the event of robbery it is easier to block a card and feel secure. 56% tend to choose a store which offers cashless payment. The advantage can be useful for store owners in terms of attracting more cus-tomers, or even so as not to lose them.

The share of cash in Geor-gia’s GDP is currently at around 8.98%.

“The Georgian card pay-ment market is characterized by a high rate of introducing innovative products. Along-side commercial banks, the Government has also played a big role in the development of card payments. Namely, launching pensions and all the social benefits started via banking channels; public service employee salaries are bound to their personal bank accounts; also, in a number of schools cash payment has become limited,” said Giorgi Melashvili, Executive Direc-tor at National Bank of Geor-gia.

“As the statistics show, cardholders are using their cards more and more in sales and service facilities. Al-though there is still a limited amount of data on this, the withdrawal of cash from ATM transactions in respect to non-cash payments by credit cards is greater, but the trend

of the latter has been steadily increasing in recent years,” said Melashvili.

The number of ATMs in Georgia is 2,077; 96 units more than it was last year. Contrary to ATMs, the num-ber of POS-terminals has in-creased by 3,070 units dur-ing a one year interval. There are 17,050 POS-terminals in Georgia, up from the 13,980 of the previous year’s figures.

In Melashvili’s words, Georgians are increasingly using electronic payments: payment cards, electronic money, internet banking or mobile banking. Accordingly, NBG is interested in making them more safe, comfortable to use and secure. “In this re-gard, we are working on the relevant rules of consumer protection and electronic pay-ment instruments,” he said.

In Melashvili’s words, the main advantages of non-cash are: security, as it reduces the risk of carrying cash; conve-nience - unlike cash it is easy to carry, secure while travel-ling or is not required to carry at all; time-saving - you can order goods and services over the internet from your very home; you have operational control of account transac-tions via sms, online, mobile banking and other remote sources; also, you are able to participate in various promos and discounts.”

Georgian Plastic Card Market Valued at More Than GEL 800 Mln

GIORGI KORKASHVILI, Ecology and Greenery Department of Tbilisi City Hall


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green business


Building new open-air, caged enclo-sures for the lions, jaguars and pen-guins are among

the up-coming plans of Tbilisi Zoo. A new primatorium will also be built. Tbilisi Zoo is waiting for a consignment of new animals to arrive, out of which the monkeys are al-ready here. In addition, sev-eral activities are planned for making Tbilisi Zoo greener, for which about GEL 40 thou-sand is spent every year. This time Tbilisi Zoo’s administra-tion is inviting all the citizens of Tbilisi to take part in keep-ing the Zoo green by building a natural, living fence along the edge of the highway that borders one side of the Zoo.

“The Zoo and newly-built highway are currently sepa-rated by a low iron grid fence. Instead of this, we would so like to have a natural, green fence,” said Zurab Gurielidze, Director of Tbilisi Zoo. “Not only we, but our society also, were concerned about the amount of noise and dust which the Zoo animals had to live alongside. Such great concern from the public in regard to this issue made us think that there would surely be plenty of volunteers who would like to help us build a living fence. Unfortunately though, we discovered that our society appears to be more interested in criticising than actually supporting us as few people have actively signed up to the idea. To ‘green’ the 400 meter fence, 1,200 ‘thuja’ plants are required. Thuja is an excellent option for a natu-ral border and living fence. Three plants should be plant-ed per every meter of territory so as to have a tight and solid living fence. One thuja plant costs GEL 7. So far, only 70 plants have been brought in for planting at the Zoo. Our Facebook page has 17 thou-sand friends. If each ‘friend’ were to bring us a plant, we would already have 17 thou-sand plants!” he added.

The idea of this campaign was to involve more people in the process of making the Zoo greener. “Tbilisi Zoo is not a private space, it is public and was created for people to enjoy. It is also a park where people can come and enjoy the only green area in the cen-tre of Tbilisi which has main-tained its historical shape. I therefore think that people should also feel responsible for the Zoo. It should be a pleasure for anyone to plant even just one plant and to know that they have contrib-uted to caring for one of the capital’s most distinguished

areas. After that, our garden-ing service will take care of the plants’ development,” said Gurielidze.

In general, almost the whole territory of the Zoo is covered by green vegetation. People can see green areas even in the open-air enclo-sures. “This requires a great amount of attention and care in terms of learning how to choose the right plant life and vegetation for the different areas in our zoo. For example, once we saw that elephants destroyed plants, and that ti-gers dug up bamboo trees, we started thinking about what kind of vegetation should be planted in each of the specific areas, especially in the open-air enclosures. The most problematic and difficult thing is actually making the open-air cages greener. There are several green islands in the Zoo,” he said.

There was an idea to build a new Zoo in the territory of Tbilisi Sea, as there is not enough space for the animals in Tbilisi Zoo. It would be a different type of zoo, one which would keep animals in larger, outdoor enclosures, confining them with moats and fences, rather than in cages. The new zoo would al-low visitors to drive through the animals and come in close proximity to them. But this idea is almost impossible to be implemented as it costs too much, according to Guri-elidze.

In that zoo there will be located only those animals which are currently facing the risk of dying out.

“We have already started activities in that territory. But the Zoo will not be moved from the capital’s centre to the Tbilisi Sea area; the rea-son being that this project

is extremely expensive and almost impossible to imple-ment. It would cost at least EUR 100 million to move the Zoo from one place to anoth-er. Because of this problem, we decided to come up with another idea, like to bring only those animals to Tbilisi Sea Zoo, which are dying out or have various problems. That Zoo will be responsible for ensuring the reproduction of the animals so as to boost their numbers. We will try to breed Caucasian Shepherds, Asian ounces (snow leopards) and goats, and build a bears’ shelter. About 50 bears cur-rently live in restaurants in the country or in other plac-es with people, which is not right. Less attractive animals will be taken from the old zoo to the new one because of the problem of space. But again, for implementing this idea it is necessary to have enough finances. Unfortunately, we are still waiting for finding the source of financing, ” said Gu-rielidze.

The most active period for visitors starts from April and lasts until winter. People do not like to visit the Zoo in bad weather or when it is cold. Over the course of the year about 600 thousand people visit Tbilisi Zoo. The ticket price for children under 13 is GEL 1 and for all others - GEL 2. I think this must make it one of the cheapest zoos in the world!

“The most popular animals at our zoo are the elephants, especially when they are play-ing. People like watching the big beasts - the lions and ti-gers - as well as the monkeys. Also, newborn animals are very popular with visitors. If a zoo has many newborn ani-mals it means that it is pro-viding good conditions for its

animals. Several years ago the reproduction level was very low. The elephant was the first animal in the Zoo to give birth to a baby in actual fact. White tigers, lions and zebras were all born last year. The number of newborn animals is increasing gradually. We are building bigger cages than there were before and we have improved the nutrition of the animals,” said Gurielidze.

Tbilisi Zoo also offers visi-tors the chance to enjoy fun-fair-like attractions. Those at-tractions which were installed too near to the animals have been removed, as they were disturbing the animals and having a negative impact on their wellbeing. There will now be two islands specifi-cally allocated for the attrac-tions - one at the entrance of the Zoo and the other - at the end. The attractions do not belong to the Zoo, but to a pri-vate company. “In my opinion there should be no attractions at the Zoo at all as it is a place where visitors should come to see animals and get informa-tion about them rather than to enjoy attractions. For this, there are other parks in Tbili-si. However, for the time be-ing the attractions will remain at the Zoo,” he said.

There are about 300 animal species in Tbilisi Zoo, includ-ing white rhinoceroses, lions and tigers.

About GEL 40,000 Spent Annually on Keeping Tbilisi Zoo Green I must emphasize that pen-

alties and filling the budget with fines is not our goal. Pre-vention is our primary goal. In this regard we are carrying out a number of measures.

Q. Would you say that citizens violating laws on the environment is due to there being an incorrect attitude in the country, as protecting the environment is not a large part of people’s ev-eryday concerns?

A. Changing the attitude of citizens toward the environ-ment is the longest and most difficult process to carry out, as the experience of various countries has shown. We just have to move from a consum-er-oriented attitude towards an attitude of care. Each per-son must realize their role in this. Unfortunately, the level of environmental awareness is low. Our Ministry is ac-tively conducting educational activities. Such information campaigns should be deliv-ered more actively. Activities enhancing environmental awareness should be imple-mented with the relevant par-ties from the earliest stages - at kindergartens, schools and universities. Electronic as well as printed media, NGOs, together with the Ministry, can play an important role in enhancing environmental awareness.

Q. Environment pro-tection is more priori-tized for developed coun-tries. Do you think that building an eco-friendly society is less achievable until the economic situ-ation improves in Geor-gia?

A. The practice of devel-oped countries shows that a country’s long-term econom-ic development is impossible without meeting environ-mental standards. It is im-portant to avoid the negative consequences of a degraded environment. This will help to avoid state expenses in the future that will be necessary to restore a degraded envi-ronment.

If we do not adhere to en-vironmental standards today and pollute the surface wa-ters, damage topsoil, or ran-domly deforest nature, in the future the state will have to pay a much greater cost for sewage treatment, restoring soil or combating landslides. Therefore, an eco-friendly environment should be con-ducted in parallel with the country’s economic develop-ment.

Q. Many new and ex-isting city parks and squares have been opened and renovated in Georgia recently; how-ever, there is still a lack of green spaces in Tbilisi. What is the number of trees that you plan to plant this year?

A. Under the initiative of the Prime Minister’s “Green Future”, planting is under-way all over Georgia. Plant-ing 500,000 saplings all over the country is planned for the end of the year. However, it should be noted that it is very important to then take care of these plants for several years. We are results-oriented.

Accordingly, plants have their own “caretakers” that have the responsibility of looking after them in the fu-ture. We are monitoring the

whole process, providing rec-ommendations, and this will continue in the future.

Q. How would you as-sess companies’ activi-ties in terms of environ-mental protection?

A. In this regard, there has been a certain revival from the private sector, which is most welcomed. Represen-tatives of companies have started to apply to us and offer various environmental events. The support of the private sector is very impor-tant. Implementing modern resource-saving technolo-gies and standards in busi-nesses is profitable not only for the environment but also for companies. Hopefully, the private sector will more and more actively realize this. In addition, the introduction of green and clean technologies significantly improves a com-pany’s image, which is also important for them.

Q. You were planning to start developing a list of green companies to encourage environmen-tally responsible com-panies. Which steps did you take to develop eco-friendly companies in Georgia in 2013?

A. In 2013 our ministry announced the contest Geor-gian Green Business. 17 com-panies applied. On 22 April, Earth Day, an awards cere-mony was held. We hope that this will encourage a broader range of businesses, and en-hance motivation and com-petition between companies in terms of environmental awareness.

Being a ‘Green Company’ means being a company that cares about solving environ-mental problems. It operates energy efficiently, does not pollute the environment, air, water and generally cares about increasing environ-mental awareness.

The winner of the Georgian Green Business was the hotel Radisson Blu Iveria. It was evaluated by the following criteria: the most innovative, ambitious and effective ini-tiative, aimed at the imple-mentation of an environmen-tal business practice.

Q. What are the main challenges for Georgian environmental protec-tion in 2014?

A. It is very difficult to sin-gle out a particular challenge. We are facing a number of important challenges. Im-proving the quality of the en-vironment, sustainable use of natural resources, creating an equal level for competition, raising public awareness, guaranteeing the confidence and support of higher qual-ity - are significant. The fight against poaching, prevention, detection and suppression of the illegal extraction of natu-ral resources, pollution and strengthening the control of performing terms of licenses and permissions - remain the main direction of our activity in terms of state supervision.

Continued on p. 3


Photo by Vladimer Shioshvili


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green business


m2 has issued the first USD-denominated corporate bonds in Georgia. The initiative will enable the company to receive an alternative source of financing. At the same time bondholders will receive an almost two times higher interest rate than the standard deposit offered by commercial banks.

The maturity of the bonds is one year. Nominal cost per bond is USD 1,000. Annual interest rate is 9.5%, taxable. Meanwhile, the annual interest rate on term deposits offered by the majority of commercial banks operating in Georgia is 5%.

The high level of trust in m2 makes the management of the company optimistic that this initiative will be successful and that other private companies will follow its lead.

“There could be various reasons behind the lack of popularity of bonds on the Georgian market. Lack of knowledge and information could be two such reasons. However

we are optimistic that the initiative of m2 will be successful and that subsequently, other companies will follow our example,” Irakli Burdiladze, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, m2, told The FINANCIAL.

“We are interested in growing and developing the bond market in Georgia. People will get used to diversifying their risks and companies will have more access to additional financial resources as a result,” said Burdiladze.

In Burdiladze’s words, “Bondholders will be able to resell the bonds on the secondary market. Bank of Georgia was the first to start issuing corporate bonds in 2005. Unfortunately, only two companies have followed this initiative,” he said.

m2 bonds are eligible for individuals who open a term deposit at Bank of Georgia or purchase a deposit certificate. Consequently, they need to place one part of their money on a term deposit and the other part - on buying a bond.

Bondholders will be able to enjoy special discounts with projects managed by m2 Real Estate.

“We never start construction of any apartment house till the funding structure is completed. We attract financing first and start construction only after that. The demand for our apartments is high. 65% of apartments on Kazbegi Avenue is already sold. 77 apartments out of 221 have been realized on Nutsubidze. We will start constructing another apartment house on Tamarashvili in the summer of 2014,” said Burdiladze.

According to Burdiladze, m2 will soon announce a new project which involves an offer of two-room turn-key apartments with kitchen installed for USD 29,000.

m2 Issues Corporate Bonds

GIORGI VAKHTANGISHVILI, CEO of JSC m2 Real Estate and IRAKLI BURDILADZE, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, m2

The FINANCIALby MARIAM GOGIBERIDZE

“When I first began it was not an easy time to start an agro business in Georgia, especial-ly wine production,” Burkhard Schuchmann, of Schuchmann Wines, told The FINANCIAL. “This was in the shock period following the Russian Em-bargo in 2006, but in the long run the challenge became a positive for Georgian wine producers and the wine sector as a whole. The diversification of markets and penetration in the global wine world was for Georgia the greatest achieve-ment and success, and which still continues today. We all, our competitors as well as ac-tors in the Georgian wine sec-tor, should come together in pursuing the same idea and compete with world wines, establish and promote the country’s identity and the ex-clusiveness of Georgian wine. The Government has imple-mented a very interesting and effective project to support agro businesses and produc-tion.”

“Schuchmann Wines Geor-gia was the beneficiary of an agricultural cheap loan proj-ect and based on our exam-ple we have significantly in-creased our production. Also, what is very important and valuable is that Georgian wine producers have become very active on international mar-kets towards global society, which will increase aware-ness of Georgian wine greatly. 2014 was a very successful year for the agriculture sector in Georgia, the ongoing trend

is promising and this is one of the most interesting develop-ing sectors in the Georgian economy,” he said.

“In Georgia, wine has its

own philosophy, approach and method of production and wine aging. It is these gold-en recipes and rules which

make Georgian wine unique and exclusive. This conclu-sion is based on the example of Schuchmann Wines - our wines are sold successfully in

Western and Eastern Europe, in the Baltic countries, China, Russia, Kazakhstan and Mon-golia,” he said.

“Schuchmann Wines are sold in France as well. This is a unique case, as there was never any history of export-ing Georgian wines to France

before; wine producers tend to avoid exporting wines to those countries which are big wine producers themselves

and exporters at the same time. That was quite a bold decision on our part there-fore, but we can say that our wine has been quite liked by French consumers. This is an achievement not only for our company, but also for Georgia as a whole.”

“From the very day of our entrance into the market the procedures for starting a business were very easy to understand and what’s more, easy to meet,” Michael Hampel, General Director at HeidelbergCement, told The FINANCIAL. “HeidelbergCe-ment always felt welcome in Georgia and the authorities showed the will to provide us with a business environment that helped us to start up suc-cessfully.”

HeidelbergCement’s activ-ity in the Georgian cement market began in May 2006 following the acquisition of a 51% stake in the Georgian ce-ment grinding plant Kartuli Cementi Ltd. This was Hei-delbergCement’s first invest-ment in the Caucasus region. Later, the company’s share in Kartuli Cementi increased up to 100%. At the end of 2006 HeidelbergCement acquired a stake of 75% in SaqCementi, the largest cement producer in the Caucasus region. Later on, in 2008 the company started concrete production and established Heidelberg-Beton Georgia. Today Hei-delbergCement runs 4 ce-ment and 9 concrete plants in Georgia and the investment process is continuing for its expansion and capacity in-crease.

“It is very easy doing busi-

ness in Georgia because the hurdles are really low in com-parison to other countries. To start up one needs a good lawyer who knows the legal framework. The rest is a ques-tion of days or a maximum of 2 weeks. We had no problems except for the fact that the ce-ment plants that we bought were in a bad state and had to be renovated - but we had identified that before buying them - so it was simply a mat-ter of following a pre-planned process of investing in newer technology,” he said.

“The main risk is that the cement market will not devel-op in a positive way as expect-ed - but since 2008 the mar-ket volumes have followed an expected, upward trend - a very positive one with slow but constant development. The well-needed infrastruc-tural projects in Georgia like the highway from Tbilisi to Poti and Batumi together with future projects like the hydro-power plants are fuel for the country’s development - and for our positive view on Geor-gia as well,” Hampel added.

“We export to Azerbaijan at the moment - but the Geor-gian market is gaining more and more momentum so that the percentage of exports is decreasing slightly. As we have a production capacity of 2.2 million tonnes a year and the total market in Georgia is around 1.6 million tonnes at the moment, we have enough cement to serve all current and future projects. Never-theless we are continuing


“The issue of the moratorium regarding land is a real problem for investors operating in the country and even for any interested foreign parties. It stops development and investment activity. I do hope that the Government will act accordingly and change this legal uncertainty.”

Continued on p. 14

Photo by Glenn Kates


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The views expressed in this website are those of FactCheck.ge and do not reflect the views of The FINANCIAL or the supporting organisations

MOSTLY FALSE

FactCheck

Mari OTIASHVILIFactCheck

On 28 March 2014, the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Gharibashvili, de-clared at the sitting

of the Government of Georgia: “I propose to make a constitu-tional change by including the definition that a family [later on, representatives of the Georgian Dream coalition ex-plained that the Prime Minis-ter meant marriage instead of family] is the union of a man and a woman. Latvia did the same, as well as Croatia before entering the EU last year. De-spite the current legislation of Georgia envisaging a family as being the union of a man and a woman, in order to avoid any misinterpretation, I believe a constitutional amendment is necessary. This legislation would neither establish any new rights for anyone nor privilege any part of society. It ensures the possibility for all of us to benefit from the al-ready existing right provided by the Georgian legislation. This is the right of our nation to make this amendment to the Constitution.” (Source: civil.ge)

FactCheck looked deep-er into the statement of the Prime Minister to investigate its accuracy.

Latvia joined the European Union on 1 May 2013, while Cro-atia did the same on 1 July 2013.

Before 2005, Article 110 of the Constitution of Latvia read as follows: “The state should protect and support marriage, family, the rights of parents and the rights of a child.” On 15 September 2005, the rul-ing party of Latvia proposed the constitutional amend-ment that would create the constitutional grounds for avoiding same-sex marriages in the future. The proposition was supported by two-thirds of the members of the Par-liament of Latvia and Article 110 of the Constitution was adapted into the following: “The State shall protect and support marriage – a union between a man and a woman, family, the rights of parents and the rights of a child…”

As for Croatia, on 1 Decem-ber 2013, Croatia held a ref-erendum on which the voters decided to introduce amend-ments to the Constitution for redefining the definition of marriage more precisely. Be-fore the aforementioned deci-sion, Article 61 of the Consti-tution of Croatia proclaimed: “Marriage and legal relations in marriage, common-law marriage and families shall be regulated by law.” From Janu-ary 2004, Article 61 of the Constitution of Croatia was formulated in the following wording: “Marriage is a union between a man and a woman.”

Rendering the aforemen-tioned paragraph to the Con-stitution aimed at prohibit-ing same-sex marriages. The referendum on this subject was initiated by the Croa-tian Catholic Church and based upon the signatures of 700,000 citizens. The above-mentioned initiative was sup-ported by the radical right-wing forces. Of note is the fact that the initiative was a back-lash against the proposition of the Government of Croatia to legalise same sex-marriages.

It is also of importance to mention that the leaders of the left-wing ruling social-ist coalition, President, Ivo Josipović, and Prime Min-ister, Zoran Milanović, sup-ported by human rights or-ganisations and the majority of Croatian media represen-tatives, were opposed to the referendum and the constitu-tional changes. The President of Croatia declared that mar-riage was already defined by the legislation of Croatia. The question posed at the refer-endum (regardless of the ref-erendum results) contained

a discriminatory message; in addition, holding the referen-dum of this sort only meant the squandering of taxpayers’ resources. According to the statement of Prime Minister Milanović, the aforemen-tioned referendum enabled the majority to deprive the minorities of their rights.

Croatia has had the Family Act since 2003. The provision of Article 5 of the Family Act lays down the legal definition of marriage. According to it, marriage is a life union of a woman and a man regulated by the law. As for the legisla-tion of Georgia, based upon Article 3 of the Law of Georgia on Marriage and Regulating Post-Marital Relationship, a couple can consist of a wom-an and a man and the current law concerns only couples of the opposite sex.

Despite the resistance of the supreme officials, Croatia still held a referendum. In No-vember 2013, 104 members of the Croatian Parliament, out of 151, supported the afore-mentioned referendum. To the question of the referen-dum: “Do you agree with the proposition that marriage is a union between a man and a woman?,” 65% of the popu-lation responded positively while 34% were opposed.

The aforementioned refer-endum and the constitutional amendments were followed by negative international response. As concerns the European Union, no official statement has been issued on the subject of the Croatian referendum. According to the declaration of the European Commission the definition of marriage is a national compe-tence.

Irakli Gharibashvili: “I propose to make a constitutional change by including the definition that a family is the union of a man and a woman. Latvia did the same, as well as Croatia before entering the EU last year.”

CONCLUSIONIrakli Gharibashvili’s statement concerning the legislative changes in the definition of mar-

riage introduced in Latvia and Croatia is correct. However, the Prime Minister wrongly asserts that Croatia made the aforementioned constitutional changes before becoming an EU member. Croatia has introduced the constitutional amendments since January 2013 after seven months of EU membership.

Of particular note is the fact that the leaders of the ruling socialist coalition of Croatia, Presi-dent, Ivo Josipović, and Prime Minister, Zoran Milanović, supported by human rights organisa-tions and the majority of Croatian media representatives, were opposed to the referendum and the constitutional changes. Furthermore, the Government of Croatia even proposed the legitimi-sation of same-sex marriages.

FactCheck concludes that the statement of the Prime Minister of Georgia: “I propose to make a constitutional change by including the definition that a family is the union of a man and a woman. Latvia did the same, as well as Croatia before entering the EU last year,” is MOSTLY FALSE.

The FINANCIALBy MARIAM GOGIBERIDZE

“According to statistics on migration, more than one million citizens of Georgia are currently outside the country,” Adeline Braux, Re-searcher at the French In-stitute of Anatolian Studies (IFEA-Istanbul), in charge of the Caucasus branch (Baku), told The FINANCIAL. “In the year 2011 alone, citizens of Georgia passed the bor-der with Turkey one million times. Circular migration to a large extent is independent from Georgia, but migrants will take advantage of this opportunity to go somewhere then come back, it allows them (especially women) not to be absent, from home, from children or from sick parents, for too long.”

“Firstly, from a purely de-mographic point of view, the largest outflow of the ‘90s strongly affected the size of the Georgian population,” Ade-line Braux, Researcher at the French Institute of Anatolian Studies (IFEA-Istanbul), in charge of the Caucasus branch (Baku), told The FINANCIAL. “When more than one million of the population of Georgia is located abroad, this means that the country has lost near-ly 20 percent of its overall population. For such a small country this is a very serious problem. It means that whole families have left, that a large segment of the working popu-lation has left, and so on. At the same time, in the post-Soviet period of transition, remittances (through banks, or basically just from hand to hand) helped many families in Georgia not to live in poverty.”

“Most often, statistics are transmitted through inter-national organizations such as the UN, International Or-ganization for Migration, the World Bank, UNHCR etc. The fact is that these organizations rely on the statistics provided by national statistics organi-zations. This does not apply only to Georgia, but also to Azerbaijan and Armenia, to mention only the countries of the South Caucasus,” she said.

“All migration specialists in the region agree that there is an absence of true data in the area of migration. There are various reasons for this, for example up until now many people have been registered as being resident in their home country, when in reality they have left. Nevertheless, the statistics show that more than one million citizens of Geor-gia are outside the country. In the year 2011 alone, citizens of Georgia passed the bor-der with Turkey one million

times. This does not mean that one million people have moved from Georgia to Tur-key, but nevertheless, it says a lot about the frequency of these movements,” Adeline Braux added.

“Basically the migration sit-uation is linked with the socio-economic situation in Geor-gia. In the meantime, Georgia remains extremely difficult for many, with a lack of jobs, adequate healthcare and so on. The migration outflow is not as strong now as it was in the ‘90s. We must also realize that certain people to some degree move abroad because they think that, for example in Western Europe, everything will be easier and better. This is the so-called ‘desire for an-other place’, or ‘we are well, where we are not’,” she added.

“It is not quite accurate to say that ‘Georgia will become a country of circular migra-tion’, circular migration is not signing a contract. This is a type of phenomena in the area of migration. And by the way, for Georgia, it already exists. But circular migration, how-ever, is highly dependent on the policies in the field of mi-gration. Turkey is again a very good example in relation to Georgia. For Georgian citizens it is very easy to get to Turkey, and it certainly gave a strong push to Georgian migration to this country, especially now that Russia is closed to Georgian migrants. However, changes have been made to Turkish legislation recently which mean that migrants from Georgia will not be able to come, stay, leave and come back again as was possible earlier. This will certainly af-fect the migration processes. Circular migration to a large extent is independent from Georgia, but migrants will take advantage of this oppor-tunity to go somewhere then come back which allows them (especially women) not to be absent, from home, from chil-dren or from sick parents, for too long,” she said.

“There are many positive and negative sides to migra-tion for both countries, for the country where they migrate to and for the country from which they migrate,” Manana Ratiani, PHD in Geographical Sciences, expert-consultant at the National Center for Teach-er Professional Development, told The FINANCIAL. “Per-haps first and foremost it should be noted that interna-tional migration is one way to eliminate inequality between countries, adding to more equal distribution of resources and opportunities. Migration is also a result of globalization, as well as a cause of speeding up globalization.”

“Countries where the num-ber of migrant outflows is more than the inflows, face many problems. The most significant of which are unem-ployment, education and less of a chance of getting other social goods. This is what pushes the adult population to leave a country. Also, there may be a lack of democracy, or environmental degradation (migrants), as well as political conflicts. However, regardless of whatever kinds of reasons there may be, people are al-ways looking for opportuni-ties to improve their quality of life,” she said.

“Remittances can be con-sidered positives. This is be-cause of the fact that people send them to family members to improve their living condi-tions. As well as this, they help to reduce unemployment and competition in the workplace. However, a lack of competi-tion in the workplace is not always good, it is possible for it to create a problem for employers in terms of lack of choice. Also if a brain drain takes place, then it turns out that the country has spent re-sources on a person’s educa-tion that will benefit, and will be paying taxes to, another country, the one where they will be employed,” Ratiani added.

“As a result of migration there are also changes in the sex and age structures. A country with a great inflow of migrants will have a more working-age population. This working-age population di-minishes from the country of which they migrate. There are also changes in the sex struc-ture. Earlier when there was greater demand for industry sectors, heavy metallurgy for example, there was more de-mand for a male labour force. However, nowadays when there is an increasing share of the service sector in the econ-omy, there is increased migra-tion of women,” she said.

“The problem of migration is very real nowadays world-wide, as it is changing natural processes, altering the picture of the population. It should also be noted that the main flow is directed from devel-oping to developed countries, which is natural as everyone wants to improve their con-ditions. Frequently, devel-oped countries often impose various barriers on entering a country in order to clamp down on the migration pro-cess. The most common form of barrier is a visa regime, a multitude of processes relat-ed to visa issuance indicate a country’s dependence on this

More Than 1 Million Georgians Abroad

Continued on p. 14

Photo by Novayagazeta-ug.ru


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CONCLUSIONThe Prime Minister’s statement regarding the tripling of exports is rather vague. The volume of

Georgian export to Russia grew 4.2-fold in 2013 as compared to the indicator of 2012, 2.52-fold relative to 2006 and 1.2-fold relative to 2005.

Over the span of the period 2005-2013, the number of countries receiving exported goods increased by 18 and the share of goods exported to Russia fell from 18% down to 7%. Considering the number of countries to which Georgia is exporting, their share in the total volume of export and the ranking, today, Georgia is indeed less dependent upon Russia than was the case in 2006.

As for Georgian export to the European market, in 2013 its volume grew by 72.2% as compared to the previous year. This figure represents the highest indicator recorded over the course of the past years but in 2013 the share of exported goods in the pool of Georgia’s total exports – 20.9% equalled the calculated average indicator of the past years. Therefore, 72.2% growth of export to European countries does not imply the greatest advances in this regard.

Accordingly, we conclude that the Prime Minister’s statement: “Georgia tripled the volume of its export to Russia. In general, I believe that at this stage it is rather improbable for Russia to proclaim another unprovoked embargo on Georgia. Even if we allow the hypothetical possibility of such an oc-currence, the impact today would not be as grave as it was in 2006. At that time, the Georgian market was exceedingly dependent upon Russia but since then, we have diversified the economy and expanded into new markets. Take Europe, for instance, where over the past year our export to the European mar-ket has grown by 65%. This is an unprecedented indicator,” is HALF TRUE.

The views expressed in this website are those of FactCheck.ge and do not reflect the views of The FINANCIAL or the supporting organisations

HALF TRUE

FactCheck

Irakli Gharibashvili: “Georgia tripled the volume of its export to Russia. However, today, the impact of the Russian embargo would not be as grave as it was in 2006. At that time, the Georgian market was exceedingly dependent upon Russia but since then, we have expanded into new markets. Over the past year, our export to the European market has grown by 65%. This is an unprecedented indicator.”

Nutsa TOKHADZEFactCheck

On 7 March 2014 the news agency Pirveli published the fol-lowing statement of the Prime Minister

of Georgia, Irakli Gharibashvili: “Georgia tripled the volume of its export to Russia. In general, I believe that at this stage it is rather improbable for Russia to proclaim another unprovoked embargo on Georgia. Even if we

allow the hypothetical possibility of such an occurrence, the im-pact today would not be as grave as it was in 2006. At that time, the Georgian market was exceed-ingly dependent upon Russia but since then, we have diversified the economy and expanded into new markets. Take Europe, for instance, where over the past year our export to the European market has grown by 65%. This is an unprecedented indicator.”

FactCheck inquired about the accuracy of the given state-ment and verified its accuracy.

As can be gathered from Table 1, over the period of 2003 to 2006 Georgia’s export to Russia

was characterised by a tendency of growth. In 2006 (following the embargo) the volume of export saw precisely a twofold decline as compared to 2005. From 2006 to 2010 the ex-port indices were decreasing whereas in the period spanning 2010 to 2013, the indicators reveal the trend of an increase. As the Prime Minister’s asser-tion regarding the triple growth of export is rather vague (it is unclear against which year the PM is comparing the export indicator of 2013) we analysed several possible interpretations of the statement which logi-cally proved to be most plau-sible. Comparing the volume of export registered in 2013 (preliminary data) to that of 2012 we observe that the vol-ume of export grew 4.2-fold

in 2013 which bolsters Irakli Gharibashvili’s claim about the tripling of the volume of export.

In the case if we compare the in-dicator of 2013 to that of 2006 (the period of imposed embar-

go and a sharp decline in the volume of export), we observe that the volume of export saw

approximately a threefold up-turn which again confirms the number indicated by the Prime Minister. However, setting the indicator of 2013 against that of 2005 (the highest indicator of export to Russia prior to the introduction of the embargo), and this is considered by Fact-Check as the most logical com-parison, it becomes evident that the volume of export surged solely 1.2-fold in 2013. This rate of growth is much lower than the figure named by the Prime Minister but it is nevertheless to be noted that in 2013 (prelimi-nary data) the export indicator reached the highest mark yet.

As for the volume of goods im-ported from Russia, it revealed a tendency of growth in the pe-riod from 2003 to 2008 whereas starting from 2008 (the after-math of the Georgian-Russian war) up until 2011, the export indicators took a downturn. Be-ginning from 2011, the volume of import from Russia surges

again and this trend continues to this day (the volume of goods imported from Russia arrived at the highest indicator in 2013). As concerns Georgia’s external trade balance with Russia, it has recurrently been expressed with a negative figure over the span of many years and this holds true to this very day as well.

Albeit in 2013 the volume of Georgia’s export to Russia achieved the topmost indicator hitherto registered, 2013 was also the year with the highest volume of imported goods from Russia. As a result, the indica-tor of the negative external trade balance reached one of the highest marks in 2013 (USD -399 million) over the span of the past years (the negative trade balance showed the high-est indicator in 2007 totalling USD -529 million). According-ly, the largest volume of export recorded in 2013 does not entail the most favourable external trade balance for Georgia.

TABLE 1. TRADE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND RUSSIA (USD THOUSAND)

TABLE 2. GEORGIA’S EXTERNAL TRADE

Source: National Statistics Office of Georgia – geostat.ge

Source: National Statistic Office of Georgia – geostat.ge

Table 2 reveals that in 2005 Russia ranked first among the 93 countries where Georgia was

exporting its goods, receiv-ing 18% of the total volume of Georgia’s exports. In 2006 (after the proclamation of the embargo) Russia drops to the third place with 8% and its indicators continue decreas-ing throughout the following years. As for 2013 (in line with the preliminary data), Russia’s share in the exported goods of Georgia mounts again, reach-ing the fourth position amidst 111 countries, revealing a no-table rise from the eleventh

position occupied in 2012. The comparison of indicators from 2005 and 2013 shows that in this specific case the difference between the first and fourth positions is not particularly big given the fact that the number of countries receiving Georgian exported goods is around 100. However, it should be men-tioned that Russia’s share in the total volume of goods ex-ported from Georgia equalled 18% in 2005 but fell to 7% in 2013. This variation can be explained by the fact that the market was more diversified in 2013 and Georgia was ex-porting to a greater number of countries (to an additional

18 states) than in 2005. Tak-ing into account the given cir-cumstances (the number of countries receiving Georgia’s exported commodities, their ranking and share in the to-

tal volume of export) it can be deduced that the Prime Min-ister’s assertion about the less negative impact of the Russian embargo is correct.

As for the volume of Geor-

gia’s imports from Russia, in 2005 Russia was in the lead of the 120 importing countries holding 15% of the total volume of imported products. Starting from 2007 Russia is slightly

falling behind but in 2013 strengthens its positions again and moves up from the sixth position to the fourth holding 8% of the Georgian imports amidst 122 importing countries.

TABLE 3. GEORGIA’S EXPORT TO EU COUNTRIES (USD THOUSAND)

Source: National Statistics Office of Georgia – geostat.ge

The table above re-veals that the share of Georgia’s export to EU countries in the total volume of Geor-

gia’s exports was characterised

with a tendency of increase from 2003 to 2006. Throughout the period between 2006 and 2012 the indices revealed certain fluctuations but, nevertheless, retained relatively high marks.

In 2013, Georgia’s export to the European market surged by 72.2% relative to 2012 (which is the highest indicator record-ed over the course of the past years) while the share of Geor-

gia’s export to EU countries in the entire volume of Georgian exports equals 20.9% (return-ing to the average indicator of the past years). Consequently, even though in 2013 the volume

of goods exported to EU coun-tries grew by 72.2% (the figure is even higher than indicated by the Prime Minister – 65%), its share in the total volume of Georgia’s exported products

stands at the average indica-tor of the past years. Therefore, 72.2% growth of export to Euro-pean countries does not entail the greatest advances in this regard.

Photo by world.fedpress.ru


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Ap p r o x i m a t e l y 600 people were killed and 8,000 more injured on Georgia’s roads in

2013, according to the Min-istry of Internal Affairs. To reduce road traffic accidents and improve road safety conditions in Georgia, Geor-gia Alliance for Safe Roads is starting activities to raise awareness in society within the framework of the UN Global Road Safety Week.

Street actions with the participation of students, the distribution of brochures and stickers, broadcast of a promotional video via TV channels and social media, and road safety seminars and workshops for pupils are the first activities which will soon start in Georgia, as a lack of awareness has been cited as the major problem causing so many car accidents in the country. The trend can only be reversed through the joint and deliberate efforts of the government, civil society and private sector.

“94 percent of the acci-dents in the world including in Georgia happen due to human factors, like speeding or drunk driving,” said Maya Kobalia, Executive Direc-tor of the Georgian Alliance for Safe Roads. “Death is not the only possible result of car accidents, but many people who survive them are left disabled or scarred. The solu-tion to this terrible situation is to raise people’s awareness from very early ages. We have therefore started a new proj-ect with one of the non-gov-ernmental organizations of Estonia. The project aims to meet with youths and explain to them the dangers of not obeying the rules. Meetings with young people and with schoolchildren will be held in ten schools of Tbilisi, Rustavi, Kutaisi and Gori,” she added.

Road safety is already in-cluded in the national curricu-lum, according to Lia Gigauri, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Georgia. “For fourth graders it is taught along with Civil Defence and for eleventh graders - it is an independent subject. We will pay more attention to educat-ing schoolchildren about the importance of road safety,” she said.

“Georgia is signing an As-sociation Agreement and DCFTA with the EU. Road safety is one of the areas in implementing EU regulations and directives,” said Pritt Turk, Ambassador of the Re-public of Estonia. “In Estonia, we have applied many of these regulations, which might seem slightly annoying in one’s everyday life, but were vital to implement. By Esto-

nia trying to meet the regula-tions the number of accidents and number of deaths on the road decreased by half. This is a huge result. However, noth-ing has been changed by the regulations themselves as it is all about the attitude. It is about how people and society relate to this issue. For young people, especially in the schools, it is very important to give them information about how to drive properly and how to be a part of road traf-fic. When we invest more in the young generation, I think it is the best investment. If Es-tonia has something to share, we are extremely happy to do it for Georgia,” he added.

“Georgia partly imple-ments the recommendations of the World Health Orga-nization (WHO) and follows a road safety strategy,” said Zurab Utiashvili, Head of the Emergency Coordination and Regime Department at the Ministry of Health. “The upcoming projects include improvement of the infra-structure of the highways and road surface, upgrad-ing public transport, as well as improving the equipment in ambulances. The changes have already been submit-ted to the law which limit car speed and alcohol levels in the blood. It is forbidden to talk on a mobile phone while driving now. Everyone must wear a helmet while rid-ing a bicycle or motorcycle as well. Also, when taking children by car, it is obliga-tory to have a special age-appropriate child’s car seat for them. After introducing these changes to the legisla-tion, Georgia got better re-sults in the report which was conducted by the WHO in 2013. The number of car ac-cidents had reduced 10 times in Georgia in 2013 compared to 2008. Also, the number of people injured decreased by 15 percent and the number of people that died - by 40 per-

cent. A total of 8,861 injured patients were registered in hospitals in 2012. 36 percent of them were due to car acci-dents. Out of the numbers of injured people, men made up the majority,” he added.

“Georgia has had the ex-perience of considerable eco-nomic growth,” said Hans Horbach, Ambassador of the Netherlands. “If we compare the number of cars here to the situation in the early ‘90s, we will see a huge difference. Traffic jams have increased as well. Georgia continues to experience a significant fatal-ity rate in traffic, however. At present the traffic fatal-ity rate in Georgia stands at 15.8 per 1,000 inhabitants. If we compare it to the Nether-lands, there it is 3.9. There is obvious willingness and com-mitment of policy and deci-sion makers to improve the safety situation on the roads in this country. It is not only about introducing new poli-cies or new structures, new regulations, it is also a mat-ter of changing behaviour and raising awareness of all traffic participants and convincing them that it is important to respect the law and to respect each other. This is an indi-vidual task for everybody who is driving or walking on the streets of Tbilisi and through-out the whole country,” said Horbach.

“The Netherlands is a small country. Yet, we have almost 70 million inhabitants. The roads there are considered some of the safest in the world. But it was not always like that. Just over 30 years ago 3,200 Dutch citizens died each year on our roads, and about 25 percent were pedestrians. All cities were challenged to cope with the ever increasing num-bers of cars and other means of transport. In response to this dilemma the Dutch de-veloped and implemented a major national campaign over the last three decades called

sustainable safety. We started to better manage and plan our cities and our traffic routes. As a result the number of traf-fic deaths was reduced dra-matically. 650 people died in traffic accidents in 2012. It is a huge decrease, of more than 80 percent if we compare it to the early ‘70s,” Horbach said.

Increased numbers of cars in Georgia has led to worsen-ing air pollution, according to Shalva Amirejibi, Deputy Minister of Environment Pro-tection and Natural Resourc-es of Georgia. Also, the low quality of transportation in Georgia leads to environmen-tal problems in the country, he says.

“The main source of air pollution in Georgia is pre-cisely transport emissions. In the last decade the num-ber of cars has doubled and there are 900,000 cars in Georgia today. 40 percent of cars are located in Tbilisi. We have designed a promo-tional programme to reduce environmental pollution. Within the framework of this programme the renewal of Georgia’s cars is planned, to optimize traffic flow manage-ment and the development of public transport,” said Amirejibi.

The Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastruc-ture of Georgia allocates 60 percent of its budget to devel-oping and modernizing roads in Georgia in accordance with European standards, accord-ing to Giorgi Amashukeli, the Deputy Minister.

Georgia Alliance for Safe Roads to Raise Awareness about Reducing Car Accidents

The FINANCIAL

Nearly two-thirds of CEOs around the world say the international tax system is in ur-

gent need of reform and 70% say the impact of tax on their company’s growth is among their top concerns, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), a multinational pro-fessional services firm head-quartered in London, United Kingdom.

Tax strategy and poli-cies are best dealt with by the Board of Directors and should include consideration of such issues as impact on stakeholders, transparency, governance and controls and communications, found the paper. It also examines the data on the impact of rising taxes on business, CEO opin-ions on tax transparency and the prospects for internation-al tax reform.

“CEOs have a difficult balancing act ahead. The in-creasing tax burden is a se-rious concern for many, and changing public attitudes to corporate taxation cannot be ignored. Tax policies, even if perfectly legal, can pres-ent a serious risk to corpo-rate reputation,” said Rick Stamm, PwC Vice Chairman Global Tax. “PwC’s 2014 Global CEO survey clearly shows that CEOs recognise the risks associated with tax policy and are actively look-ing for ways to help stake-holders understand their total tax contribution to so-ciety,” he added.

The impact on society of corporate taxes far beyond the often controversial tax on corporate profits, the pa-per notes. Companies also pay employment and benefits taxes, property taxes, indirect taxes such as VAT and sales taxes, and many other direct and indirect taxes and tax costs. All contribute to the total tax picture in a jurisdic-tion the degree of confidence

companies have that tax is-sues will be handled fairly and openly.

For CEOs, tax reform is the single biggest issue that needs to be addressed; 65% said that the international tax sys-tem doesn’t meet the needs of multinationals. However, just 27% feel a consensus on tax reform can be reached among the G20 countries in the near future, according to PwC.

As CEOs expand their op-erations at home and abroad, the tax burden is seen as a major barrier to growth; 70% of CEOs cite the impact of tax and its potential to affect growth as a concern, an in-crease from 62% last year.

CEOs are extremely aware of the need to rebuild the trust between business and stake-holders. 49% said that a lack of trust in business hampers their prospects for growth, an increase from 37% last year. Many CEOs are emphasising the importance of promoting a culture of ethical behaviour in business decision-making; three-quarters agreed that it was important that their com-pany was seen to be paying its ‘fair share’ of tax.

Overall, 63% of CEOs worldwide say that govern-ment tax policy and the competitiveness of local tax regimes are key factors in de-cisions about where to oper-ate their business, according to PwC.

CEOs have little confidence that their own government or the international community will succeed in making the tax reforms that they need. Just 21% of CEOs felt that their government had been effec-tive in creating a more inter-nationally competitive and efficient tax system.

“The reality is that tax is a cost as well as an obligation. A well thought out tax strategy balances business cost pres-sures, national fiscal needs and international tax norms in a sustainable way. It can-not be solely about a race to the minimum level of taxes,” said Stamm.

CEOs See Need for Urgent Tax Reform

The FINANCIAL

A strong major-ity of U.S. adults (81%) across the political spec-trum (77% Rep.,

84% Dem., 81% Ind.) see tax system as a cause of economic

inequality in the United States - but that doesn’t mean every-one agrees on what’s wrong with it, according to Harris Interactive Inc.

When asked whether taxes on different groups of Ameri-

A Taxing Issue: Majorities of Americans Support Increasing Taxes on the Very Rich

Continued on p. 16


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Advertiser: The FINANCIAL. Contact FINANCIAL Ad Dep at [email protected]


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to invest in the plants and in new technology. We have started the projecting of a new cement line in Kaspi that will cost around GEL 200 million and that will further increase our cost leadership on the Georgian market. As the im-porters of cement from Tur-key, Armenia, Iran and Azer-baijan are hard competitors we have to be careful when it comes to cost leadership,” Hampel said.

“Of course quality is a ma-jor factor when a company wants to export to the EU. The transport costs are a huge factor so products with a large weight and without the pos-sibility to differentiate them-selves from currently offered products will have problems. The best are those products that are unique and have a certain quality that cannot be met by European competi-tors. Wine is a very good ex-ample of such a product. I do not speak of low quality wines but about the kinds of grapes that do not exist in Europe. I recently had a white wine made of Kisi - it was extraor-dinarily good and so different from all the white wines that I have had before in my life,” he added.

“It’s straightforward and easy to start a business and to go through the paperwork in Georgia, our country does not pose any bureaucratic bar-riers in this regard,” Giorgi Mshvildadze, Commercial Di-rector at Tegeta Motors, told The FINANCIAL. “To start your business, first of all you need to have a business idea, implement market research and of course have the neces-sary financial resources. The conditions for starting a busi-ness in Georgia are simple, both for local and foreign in-vestors. There are no special privileges for Georgians, nei-ther for foreigners; the condi-tions are equal and the same for everyone. Businessmen from neighbouring countries point out that doing business in Georgia is quite easy for them.”

Tegeta Motors is a hold-ing that offers a full range of auto products and services to corporate and retail custom-ers; the company, with 100% Georgian investment, is the official representative of a number of German world fa-mous brands. Tegeta Motors has five daughter companies: “Tegeta Truck and Bus” LLC (official representative of “MAN Nutzfahrzeuge AG”), “Tegeta Construction Equip-

ment” LLC (JCB official rep-resentative), Tegeta Premium Vehicles (official representa-tive of Porsche and Mazda), Transcaucasia Distribution Company (official representa-tive of Shell Lubricants) and Toyota Centre Tegeta (offi-cial dealer of Toyota). Tegeta Motors also established a joint venture with Gebruder Weiss, Austrian forwarding and logistics company, and constructed a premium class logistics centre equipped with modern technologies.

“There are no risks related to business in Georgia. Once again, I would like to note that businessmen from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey feel more comfortable here rather than in their own countries. Due to the transparent busi-ness environment, no double accounting and no bribery and corruption, our country is becoming more and more attractive for investors. In countries with problematic bureaucracy and corruption local businesses feel more comfortable than foreign ones. In this regard Georgia is more loyal, in that it encour-ages investors,” he said.

“The important thing for large investors is to see the potential of the market. Hav-ing more than enough finan-cial resources for investment, they look at the market and the perspective of market de-velopment. Georgia is a devel-oping country with a growing market and large investors may see the prospective de-velopment of businesses not yet represented on our mar-ket, those that may prove to be in demand and necessary in the future. They may there-fore establish businesses that will become profitable in 5-10 years, not immediately.

As for Tegeta Motors, the secret of our success lies in a constant focus on develop-ment, taking new challenges and pursuing new tasks, which is very well depicted in the driving principle of our company “never stop at the achieved”.

Continued from p. 9


process,” she added.“There is no universal reci-

pe to solve this problem. The individual countries them-selves make the choice of what kind of immigration policy to establish, derived from the ob-jective they have. Social, eco-nomic, political, demographic factors and trends should all be taken into consideration. All countries, taking into ac-count their own interests, can solve this problem. For ex-

ample, the United States - it has a strict visa regime, as well as large sums of money being spent on protecting the bor-der with Mexico. Meanwhile, the Georgian border is open and there is no problem with coming here. By comparison, Singapore governs according to its will, for example, they have a demographic problem, the population is declining, but instead of letting anyone into the country they prefer to open the country only to grad-uates. Also they have com-plicated processes related to

adult outflow, in terms of set-ting up a family,” Ratiani said.

“Policy plays an important role in migration, because wars and conflicts have al-ways been followed by forced migration. As well as that there is more will to travel from authoritarian and less democratic countries to dem-ocratic ones. Often the latter are hindered by limitations. There are countries in which the state itself promotes mi-gration. For example, Ban-gladesh, due to population density, natural growth, and

unemployment being too high, the state is not able to solve these problems, and so they promote the employ-ment of foreign workers. As well as the importance of the part policy plays, is what kind of migration policy a country will have,” she added.

“The problem with Georgia is the flow of the working pop-ulation of the country, which demographically complicates our situation, as there is a declining birth rate. Also the problem is that the majority of people are employed in posi-

tions inconsistent with their education, which means that the investment in education is being spent in vain. In their place there is a great inflow from less developed countries with less education. If the eco-nomic and social problems are not resolved in time, with the EU visa policy easing it may lead to a very large migration. Thus, we need to be positively prepared for this move so that Georgia will not empty. There were a lot of promises made by the government before 2008, but those have not been

met, which can be seen from the number of people’s rela-tives who continue to work abroad,” she said.

Continued from p. 10

More Than 1 Million Georgians Abroad


Georgia hosted 1,006,267 inter-national travellers during the first three months of

2014, up from 935,358 during the first quarter of 2013. The number has shown growth of 70,909 travellers, or 8%, this year. Turkey, Azerbaijan, Ar-menia, Russia and Ukraine complete the list of the top 5 countries from which Georgia hosted the largest number of travellers. Despite the politi-cal tensions, travellers from Ukraine and Russia have increased by 51% and 41% respectively during the first quarter of 2014, in compari-son with the same period of 2013.

With 87.7%, land is the main means of transport for international travellers visit-ing Georgia. It is followed by air, making up 10.5%. The rest is occupied by railway (9,578) and sea - 7,285. De-spite its small share, a quar-terly comparison has shown the largest growth to be in air passengers. 18,468, or 21%, more passengers travelled to Georgia during the first three months of 2014, com-pared with the same period of last year. Travellers enter-ing Georgia by land have in-creased by 7%, and 3% more have travelled by railway. The only reduction was recorded in passengers crossing the sea border. 20% fewer travellers came to Georgia by sea than during the same three months of 2013.

Georgia expects to have 18% growth of international trav-ellers during the current year, in comparison with 2013, ac-cording to the Georgian Na-tional Tourism Administra-tion (GNTA). Georgia hosted 5,392,303 international trav-ellers in 2013. The results of the first quarter have already reflected this growth.

The number of interna-tional travellers in Georgia is expected to exceed 6 mil-lion during 2014. In 2013 the country had 26% growth of tourists and was named ‘star performer’ by the World Tourism Administration.

Out of the top 15 countries by arrivals the largest in-crease of visitors during the first three months of 2014 was

from Poland (147%), followed by Iraq (69%), Ukraine (51%), Russia (41%), Armenia (30%) and Azerbaijan (28%). GNTA runs active campaigns on its target markets abroad: Ger-many, Azerbaijan, Austria, the Netherlands and Israel. As a result of its promotional activities GNTA expects visi-tors from Ukraine to double. Significant growth is expected from Poland, Azerbaijan and Armenia too.

A total of 9,887 Iranians travelled to Georgia in 2014, down from 15,683 from the figure of the first three months of 2013. With negative change of 5,796, or 37%, Iran is the leading country out of the top 15 by arrivals from which the number of travellers has de-creased in 2014. It is followed by Turkey, out of which 22% less citizens travelled to Geor-gia, the UK - 14%, Israel - 11% and the USA - 10%.

With 977,734 Europe is the top region by arrivals to Geor-gia. It is followed by East Asia and the Pacific from which 16,513 arrived to Georgia in 2014. 5,454 Americans visited Georgia during the current year. 5,264 were from the Middle East and the number of Africans reached just 993.

Okace Canyon is one of the main sightseeing areas of Georgia that will host its first visitors in June 2014. Accord-ing to the Agency of Protected Areas, the visitors’ centre, hiking trails and public toilets are all currently still under construction.

A 1,200 meter hanging trail is being built along the Canyon. The Okace Canyon project is being financed from the state budget and the cost

is GEL 4,850 thousand. En-trance fees to the Canyon have not yet been set. The ar-rangement of Okace Canyon was announced by ex-Presi-dent Mikheil Saakashvili back in August 2012. The complex will include: cafeteria, educa-tional amphitheatre, ethno-graphic playground and rec-reation areas.

The Georgian National Tourism Administration plans to participate in 20 in-ternational tourism fairs and exhibitions. Participation in such exhibitions will con-tribute to the enhancement of Georgia’s awareness as a tourist destination. Also, the project aims to support the private sector involved in the tourism industry, and acquire valuable contacts for future cooperation.

Development of rural tour-ism in the suburbs of Tbilisi is one of the upcoming proj-ects initiated by GNTA. The Association has planned the research of the agro tourism potential of the suburbs of the capital. In line with it a new product will be created. The main objective of the project is the creation of a new agro tourist product near Tbilisi. Residents of Tbilisi are the primary target market for this product. It is the best option for planning holidays and weekends near Tbilisi. Resi-dents living in local houses or hotels, who run their own smallholdings or farms, will host visitors. Guests will be offered various eco touris-tic activities and ecologically clean products. The project will contribute to the growth of travellers’ visits to the suburbs of Tbilisi. It will en-

courage the development of small family enterprises and the production of ecologically clean products. Local employ-ment will increase as will resi-dents’ incomes.

The average expenditure of foreign travellers to Georgia per visit amounts to GEL 626. Russian tourists on average are the most generous visi-tors while Armenians, who are the majority in terms of total number of tourists in the country, spend the small-est average amount of money when staying in Georgia. Food and beverage, accommoda-tion, shopping and entertain-ment are the main outgoings of visitors to the country.

Citizens of Russia are in first place in terms of amount of expenditure in Georgia, according to GNTA. Per trip to Georgia they spend on av-erage about GEL 1,180. The subsequent places are held by visitors from Central and Eastern European countries. Tourists from these countries spend GEL 943 on average. Next comes Turkey - GEL 533, Azerbaijan - GEL 467, and Armenia - GEL 301, ac-cording to data from the Georgian National Tourism Administration. This data is from 2013.

Number of Travellers to Georgia Increased by 8% in 2014


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dining| places we strongly reccommend to visit |

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La Brioche

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Betsy’s Hotel

32-34 Makashvili Street, 0108, Tbilisi, GeorgiaTel: 251 00 01

Fax: 253 00 [email protected]

15 Lubliana Str.

37 Chavchavadze Ave.Tel.: 291 30 26; 291 30 76

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8, Vakhtang Gorgasali Str. Batumi, Georgia Tel: +995 422 27 48 [email protected]

Tel: 888 222 2900www.sheraton.com/tbilisi

The tickets are available at tbilisi international airport freedom square 4

courtyard marriott hotel, 1st floorTel: 2400 400; 2400 040

36 Al. Kazbegi ave. Tbilisi, 0177, GeorgiaTel/Fax: 229 43 43

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Tel.: 222 44 17577 22 99 22

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Radisson Blu Iveria Hotel Rose Revolution Square 1

Tel.: 240 22 00; Fax: 240 22 01 [email protected] radissonblu.com/hotel-tbilisi

LE MARAIS

32 Abashidze Str. Tel: 222 40 83

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20 Telavi Str.Tel: 277 20 20Fax: 277 21 20

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Village Anaklia, Zugdidi, Georgia

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275 Agmashenebeli Ave.,

Kobuleti, GeorgiaTel: 2242400Fax: 2242403GEORGIA PALACE

HOTEL

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4 Freedom SquareTel: 2988 988, Fax: 2988 910

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Erekle II str.Tel: 555 00 44 46

Literary cafe “MONSIEUR JORDAN”V. Gorgasali st.,17Tel.: 275-02-07

Georgian Real Estate Management

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BUSINESSTRAVELCOMHOTEL AND AIRTICKET BOOKING: 2 999 662 | SKY.GE

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Tel: 570 10 33 19

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Fragola


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green business

cans - segmented by income - are too high, too low or fair, nearly half (46%) feel taxes on the poor are too high, while over one-third (35%) feel they’re fair (up from 29% in 2012) and nearly one in ten (8%) feel they’re too low.

Sentiments are far less di-vided on the other end of the income spectrum. Majorities see taxes on both billionaires (65%) and people with in-comes of $1 million per year (58%) as too low, one in ten each see taxes on these groups as too high (9% for billion-aires, 11% for those earning $1 million per year) while 14% feel current rates are fair for billionaires and 19% say the same for $1m earners, accord-ing to Harris Interactive Inc.

Turning to the middle ground between low income and those earning $1million or more each year, over six in ten Americans see taxes on the middle class as too high (62%), while nearly three in ten (28%) see them as fair and only 2% see them as too low. For people with incomes of $200,000 per year, four in ten Americans (39%) feel tax rates are fair, three in ten (31%) feel they’re too low and nearly two in ten (17%) be-lieve they’re too high.

Democrats (56%) are far more likely than either Re-publicans (35%) or Indepen-dents (41%) to see taxes on the poor as too high, while majorities across party lines agree they’re too high for the middle class (61%, 68% and 59%, respectively). Demo-crats (39%) are also more likely than either Republicans (23%) or Independents (29%) to see taxes as too low for those earning $200,000 per year. Independents fall more squarely between the two parties on the perceptions of taxes on those earning $1 mil-

lion per year (72% Dem. vs. 57% Ind. vs. 42% Rep.) and billionaires (80% vs. 64% vs. 49%, respectively) as too low. Americans earning under $35,000 per year are more likely than any other income group to see taxes on the poor as too high (61%); those earning $35,000 to under $75,000 (46%) are also more likely to hold this belief than those with $100,000 or more in annual income (35%). Gen-eration outlooks show some differences as well, with Mil-lennials (52%) less likely than any other generation (64% Gen Xers, 69% Baby Boom-ers, 64% Matures) to see taxes on the middle class as too high, while Gen Xers and Baby Boomers (35% each) are more likely than either Mil-lennials (26%) or Matures (25%) to see taxes on those earning $200,000 per year as too low.

Majorities of Americans agree - many of them strongly - that increasing taxes on the very rich would be fair (70% agree, 44% strongly so), that it would be the right thing to do (68%, 45%) and that it would help reduce the budget deficit (63%, 34%). Only 35% agree (18% strongly so) that it would hurt the economy be-cause these are the very rich are the ones who create jobs, according to Harris Interac-tive Inc.

Political breakouts follow expected patterns; Democrats are most likely and Republi-cans least so, with Indepen-dents falling in between, to agree that doing so would be fair (87% Dem. vs. 69% Ind. vs. 49% Rep.), that it would be the right thing to do (85% vs. 69% vs. 49%, respectively) and that it would help reduce the budget deficit 77% vs. 64% vs. 43%, respectively). Also predictably, the inverse is true for agreement that doing so would hurt the economy because the very rich are the

ones who create jobs (56% Rep. vs. 34% Ind. vs. 21% Dem.).

Matures (50%) are less like-ly than any other generation (70% Millennials, 62% each Gen Xers and baby Boomers) to believe increasing taxes on the very rich would help reduce the budget deficit, though sentiments are consis-tent across generations for all other sentiments, according to Harris Interactive Inc.

Some high earners have made waves in recent news cycles by floating notions of tying voting rights, or the de-gree to which votes “count,” to taxes, and different forms of this concept receive differ-ent levels of support among U.S. adults. Nearly four in ten (37%) agree that the right to vote should be reserved for those who pay taxes, while only 14% each agree that how much a person’s vote counts in elections should be tied to either the rate at which they’re taxed or how much they pay in taxes overall.

Nearly half of Republicans (47%) agree the right to vote should be reserved for taxpay-ers, compared to a third of In-dependents (34%) and three in ten Democrats (30%). Sup-port for ideas of tying voting “strength” to either the rate at which one is taxed (13% Rep., 16% Dem., 11% Ind.) or how much one is taxed overall (14%, 15% and 11%, respec-tively) is low across party lines. Millennials are more likely than any other genera-tion to agree that the right to vote should be reserved for those who pay taxes (49%, vs. 34% Gen Xers, 32% Baby Boomers and 28% Matures) and that how much a per-son’s vote counts should be measured by the rate at which they’re taxed (24% vs. 13%, 9% and 6%, respectively), ac-cording to Harris Interactive Inc.

A Taxing Issue: Majorities of Americans Support Increasing Taxes on the Very Rich

Continued from p. 12

REDUCE PAPER USAGE

Set up an intranet that employees can use to access internal docu-ments such as policies and procedures, phone lists etc.Rely on email for billing, invoices, communication with clients, regular reporting and more.Offer a direct deposit option to employees for payroll.

Switch to e-marketing including using your website as a sales tool, utilizing email newsletters, and using online advertising.Use the Microsoft Word “track changes” program for editing documents.Offer employees personal size dry erase boards for note-taking.When you need to print, buy only 100% post consumer waste recycled paper

ENCOURAGE TELECOMMUTING, USE OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AND CARPOOLINGSave fuel usage, employee expense on gas and office energy usage by of-fering telecommuting. For employees coming to the office, offer incentives for use of public transportation and carpooling.

TAKE SMALL STEPS TO REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTIONImplement a few energy-saving measures to help fight air pollution, global warming and to reduce your company’s electric or natural gas bill.Invest in energy saving power strips, which can make up for their costs in just a few weeks.Turn off lights when not in use, especially in bathrooms, kitchens and lower use areas.Take advantage of natural daylight and reduce lighting inside the office.Be use to power down large office equipment (and unplug!) when employ-ees are done working.

SWITCH ALL LIGHT BULBS TO COMPACT FLUORESCENTSWhile the initial investment may cost more than conventional bulbs, CFLs last longer-- so over time your office will save money and save energy.

REUSE AND RECYCLETake every advantage to reuse materials in the office. This can include re-using envelopes for intra-office and postal mail, using rechargeable batteries and buy recycled toner cartridges.Recycle glass, plastic, metal cans, white paper, and mixed paper and or-ganics.

REDUCE COMPUTER ENERGY CONSUMPTIONBy turning off or at least powering down your PCs during periods of inactivity – such as at night or over the weekend – Energy Star estimates that firms can save anywhere between $25-$75 per PC per year.Set computers to switch to a low-power sleep mode after a few minutes of inactivity and make sure to optimize efficiency settings on all newer comput-ers.

BECOME CARBON NEUTRALCalculate the carbon emissions of your office (using an online calculator or by contacting your local power company), then purchase carbon offsets.

REDUCE WATER USAGECheck all office kitchens and bathrooms regularly for leaks and fix immedi-ately.Install low-flow toilets (alternately, you can place a plastic container filled with water in the tank of the toilet).Encourage employees to be conscious of water usage when cooking, mak-ing coffee and tea, etc.

Green Checklist


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APRIL 28, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Band Zarebi SkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-32 21:00 - Band “Wheels”, DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band Plaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia SuramelashviliRestaurant “Dzveli Sakhli” 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian songs with live performance Restaurant “Bermukha” Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69 Everyday from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet “Taoba”: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Café “Kala” 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Rezo Kiknadze - saxophonistPub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Goblins» (Covers)

2Cinema«Rustaveli» Cinema 5 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 293-22-53, 2 555-000 «The Amazing Spider-Man 2» 3D;«Full Speed Westward»;«Divergent»;«Captain America: The Winter Soldier» 3D;«Rio 2» 3D;«Noah» 3D(Ticket price: 7,50 - 12,50 GEl)«Amirani» Cinema 36 Kostava Str. Tel: 299-99-55 «The Amazing Spider-Man 2» 3D;«Full Speed Westward»;«Divergent»;«Captain America: The Winter Soldier» 3D;«Rio 2» 3D(Ticket price: 7,50 - 12,50 GEl)

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24Exhibition of lado Gudiashvili Lado Gudiashvili Exhibition Hall 11 l. Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 293 23 05 Exhibition Hall is working every day, 11:00 - 18:30 except Mondays and official holidays. Entry: Adults - 5 GEL / People from 6-18 - 3 GEL / Students and pensioners (with ID) - 3 GEL / Admission is free for orphan groups (with proof of status) and for children under 6 till - April 30 Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery invites you at the exhibition «Visions of Mexican Art». D. Shevardnadze National Gallery 11, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-80-22 Gallery’s working hours: Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00 till - May 2 The Young Artists Charity Exhibition «New Life» Zurab Tsereteli Museum of Modern Art 27, rustaveli Ave. till - April 28 Annyversary exhibition of the Georgian artist Ilo Patashuri Sh. Amiranashvili Art Museum 1, Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 299-71-76 Museum is working every day except Monday. From 11:00 till 17:00 till - April 30 Baia Gallery requests the pleasure of your company at the opening of Alexander Mikadze’s exhibition - Stained-Glass Window. Exhibition will be opened on 18.04.2014 at 7 p.m. Baia Gallery 10 Shardeni Str. Tel: 275-45-10 Gallery’s working hours: 12:00-19:00 till - May 1

APRIL 29, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Nali BandSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-32 21:00 - Band «Wheels», DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band Restaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69 Everyday from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi KakutiaPlaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia Suramelashvili Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian songs with live performance Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Maia Kankava Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Goblins» (Covers)


3Theatrerustaveli Theatre17, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 272-68-68Old Jokers Director: Gocha Kapanadze Cast: Kakhi Kavsadze, Darejan Kharshiladze, Zaza lebanidze, Jemal Ghaghanidze, Manana Gamcemlidze, Marina Janashia Duration: 140 minutes Date: April 29 Hall: Small Stage Time: 19:00 Price: 10, 15, 20 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966As You like it Director: levan Tsuladze Cast: Manana Kozakova, Nato Kakhidze, Ketevan Shatirishvili, Ketevan Tskhakaia, Nata Murvanidze, Tamar Bukhnikashvili, Nikoloz Tavadze, Malkhaz Abuladze, Beso Baratashvili Duration: 120 minutes Date: April 29 Hall: Big Stage Time: 20:00 Price: 6 - 16 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Borders Director and Choreographer: Giorgi Osepashvili Cast: Ketevan Kitiashvili, Beka Goderdzishvili, Giorgi Osepashvili Duration: 140 minutes Date: April 29 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21So what if wet lilac is wet Director: Gogi Todadze Cast: Giorgi Bakhutashvili, Otar lortkipanidze, Nikoloz paikridze, Medea Jibladze, Tamar Tavkhelidze, Tamar Aznarashvili, Mariam Karkashadze, David Kolelishvili Date: April 29 Time: 19:00 Price: 6, 9, 11 GElTheatre Factory 53, Kostava Str.Maria Callas - Master Class Director: robert Sturua Cast: lela Alibegashvili, David Darchia, lela Akhalaia, Archil Gogitidze, Kate Svanidze, David

Uplisashvili Duration: 75 minutes Date: April 29 Time: 20:00 Price: 10, 12, 15, 20 GElGeorgian State Pantomime Theatre 37 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-63-14Shakespeare Sonnets Director: David Shalikashvili Duration: 50 minutes Date: April 29 Time: 19:00 Price: 7 GElTbilisi Nodar Dumbadze State Central Children’s Theatre99/1, D. Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 295-78-74, 295-39-27Clownery Director: Nikoloz Sabashvili Cast: Nino Archaia, Khatia Melkadze, Nino Papiashvili, Levan Katsiashvili, Vakhtang Nozadze, Salome Tsurtsumia Duration: 60 minutes Date: April 29 Hall: Small Stage Time: 12:00 Price: 7, 10 GElSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs Director: Dimitri Khvtisiashvili Cast: Nino lezhava, Tamar lortkipanidze, Nino Shushiashvili, Tamara Chanuyvadze, Kakha Gabelaia, Mariam Chukhrukidze, Nikoloz Kvantaliani, Nikoloz Nanitashvili, Gaga Shishinashvili Duration: 120 minutes Date: April 29 Hall: Big Stage Time: 12:00 Price: 7, 10 GElMousetrap Director: Otar Baghaturia Cast: David Khakhidze, Khatia Melkadze, Badri Gvazava, Paata Kikvadze, Salome Tsurtsumia, Giorgi Gogishvili, Merab Sharikadze, Khatuna Berdzenishvili Duration: 80 minutes Date: April 29 Hall: Big Stage Time: 15:00 Price: 7, 10 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24Exhibition of lado Gudiashvili Lado Gudiashvili Exhibition Hall 11 l. Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 293 23 05 Exhibition Hall is working every day, 11:00 - 18:30 except Mondays and official holidays. Entry: Adults - 5 GEL / People from 6-18 - 3 GEL / Students and pensioners (with ID) - 3 GEL / Admission is free for orphan groups (with proof of status) and for children under 6 till - April 30 Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery invites you at the exhibition «Visions of Mexican Art». D. Shevardnadze National Gallery 11, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-80-22 Gallery’s working hours: Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00 till - May 2 Annyversary exhibition of the Georgian artist Ilo Patashuri Sh. Amiranashvili Art Museum 1, Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 299-71-76 Museum is working every day except Monday. From 11:00 till 17:00 till - April 30 Baia Gallery requests the pleasure of your company at the opening of Alexander Mikadze’s exhibition - Stained-Glass Window. Exhibition will be opened on 18.04.2014 at 7 p.m. Baia Gallery 10 Shardeni Str. Tel: 275-45-10 Gallery’s working hours: 12:00-19:00 till - May 1

APRIL 30, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Band ZarebiSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-32 21:00 - Band «Wheels», DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band Plaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia Suramelashvili MacLaren’s Irish Pub 5 rkinis rigi (Chardin) Mob: 599 57 85 4921:30 - Enjoy a unique ambiance of 60s-70s hits and improvisations by David Gabidzashvili and David Barnabishvili. Great mood is guaranteed! Spend evening at the warmest pub in the city!Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian DancesRestaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69 Everyday from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Live Band Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «The Jumping General»


3Theatrerustaveli Theatre17, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 272-68-68Soon i will Come as rain... Director: David Sakvarelidze Cast: Nino Tarkhan-Mouravi, Nino Makashvili, Temiko Tchitchinadze, Dato Darchia, Zaza Baratashvili, Datuna Gotsiridze, Natia Kvashali, Tamta Inashvili, Nino Kasradze, Nika Katsaridze Date: April 30 Hall: Experimental Stage Time: 19:00 Price: 8, 10 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966The ArT Director: Temur Chkheidze Cast: Zura Kipshidze, Mikheil Gomiashvili, Aleko Makharoblishvili Duration: 105 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Big Stage Time: 20:00 Price: 4 - 10.50 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Tango with illegitimate Director: Ketevan Kharshiladze, Guram Vashakidze Cast: Kote Tolordava, Ia Shughliashvili, Eka Nijaradze, lile philphani, Nino Gomarteli, Nino Dumbadze, Tamar Bukhnikashvili, Nikusha Chikovani, levan Gelbakhiani Duration: 140 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Theatre in Attic Time: 20:00 Price: 11 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Meet You in paradise Director: Sandro Eloshvili Cast: Zurab Berikashvili, Nino Gachechiladze, Guram Jashi, David Khurtsilava, Nodar Doghonadze Duration: 90 minutes Date: April 30 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21Toy pistol Director: Giorgi Shalutashvili Cast: Ani Aladashvili, Giorgi Abashidze Duration: 75 minutes Date: April 30 Time: 19:00 Price: 6, 9, 12 GElTbilisi Nodar Dumbadze State Central Children’s Theatre99/1, D. Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 295-78-74, 295-39-27The lullaby’s power Director: Otar Bagaturia Cast: Vameh Jangidze, Khatia Melkadze, ioseb Molodinashvili, Nino lortkifanidze, paata Kikvadze, Mariam Chukhrukidze, Nikoloz Kvantaliani, Nikoloz Nanitashvili Duration: 110 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Big Stage Time: 11:00 Price: 7, 10 GElClownery Director: Nikoloz Sabashvili Cast: Nino Archaia, Khatia Melkadze, Nino Papiashvili, Levan Katsiashvili, Vakhtang Nozadze, Salome Tsurtsumia Duration: 60 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Small Stage Time: 12:00 Price: 7, 10 GElNatsarkekia Director: Dimitri Khvtisiashvili Cast: Khatia Melkadze, Badri Gvazava, Levan Katsiashvili, Giorgi Katchakhidze, Paata Mkheidze, Vakhtang Nozadze, Nino Lortkifanidze, Paata Kikvadze, Kakha Tcholadze Duration: 90 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Small Stage Time: 15:00 Price: 7, 10 GElromeo & Juliet Director: levan Tsuladze Cast: Vameh Jangidze, David Khakhidze, Kote Tolordava, Nino Papiashvili, Kakha Gabelaia,

Vano Dugladze, Beso Megrelishvili, Mariam Chukhrukidze, Kakha Tcholadze, Nikoloz Nanitashvili Duration: 160 minutes Date: April 30 Hall: Big Stage Time: 15:00 Price: 7, 10 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24Exhibition of lado Gudiashvili Lado Gudiashvili Exhibition Hall 11 l. Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 293 23 05 Exhibition Hall is working every day, 11:00 - 18:30 except Mondays and official holidays. Entry: Adults - 5 GEL / People from 6-18 - 3 GEL / Students and pensioners (with ID) - 3 GEL / Admission is free for orphan groups (with proof of status) and for children under 6 till - April 30 Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery invites you at the exhibition «Visions of Mexican Art». D. Shevardnadze National Gallery 11, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-80-22 Gallery’s working hours: Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00 till - May 2 Annyversary exhibition of the Georgian artist Ilo Patashuri Sh. Amiranashvili Art Museum 1, Gudiashvili Str. Tel: 299-71-76 Museum is working every day except Monday. From 11:00 till 17:00 till - April 30 Baia Gallery requests the pleasure of your company at the opening of Alexander Mikadze’s exhibition - Stained-Glass Window. Exhibition will be opened on 18.04.2014 at 7 p.m. Baia Gallery 10 Shardeni Str. Tel: 275-45-10 Gallery’s working hours: 12:00-19:00 till - May 1

MAY 1, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Nali BandSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-32 21:00 - Band «Band’a’roll», DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band MacLaren’s Irish Pub 5 rkinis rigi (Chardin) Mob: 599 57 85 4921:30 - Enjoy a unique ambiance of 60s-70s hits and improvisations by David Gabidzashvili and David Barnabishvili. Great mood is guaranteed! Spend evening at the warmest pub in the city! Restaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69 Everyday from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Plaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia Suramelashvili Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian songs with live performance Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Guliko Chanturia Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Good Company»


3TheatreMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Hadji Murad Director: Gizo Jordania Cast: Givi Chuguashvili, paata inauri, rati Goguadze, Giorgi Shavgulidze, Gaga Shishinashvili, Zaza Iakashvili, Temur Kiladze, Marlen Egutia Date: May 1 Hall: Big Stage Time: 20:00 Price: 6 - 16 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Fuel Director: Tata popiashvili Cast: Misha Gomiashvili, Koko Roinishvili, Ana Kurtubadze Duration: 90 minutes Date: May 1 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21Visit to a Psychologist Director: Eka Sharikadze, Maia Doborjginidze, Tiko Katamashvili Cast: Maia Khornauli, Giorgi Jikia, Natia Kvashali, Shako Mirianashvili, Salome Chulikhadze, Giorgi Marshania, Maraiam Nadiradze Date: May 1 Time: 19:00 Price: 6, 10, 12 GElTumanishvili Film Actors Theatre 164 Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 234-28-99Our Small City Director: Mikheil Tumanishvili Cast: Gia Abesalashvili, Mzia Arabuli, Koko Roiniishvili, Zurab Kipshidze, Natalia Shengelaia, Nino Chkheidze, Nika Tserediani, Nineli Chankvetadze, Darejan Khachidze, Darejan Jojua, Beka Jumutia Duration: 170 minutes Date: May 1 Time: 19:00 Price: 10 GEliliauni Theatre32, i. Chavchavadze Ave. Tel: 229-47-15Harms Director: Otar Egadze Cast: Davit Gigolashvili, Davit Gotsiridze, Maia Gelovani, Tatia Buadze, Maka Dzagania, Tamta Tsintsadze, Dato Velijanashvili Duration: 75 minutes Date: May 1 Time: 20:00 Price: 5 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery invites you at the exhibition «Visions of Mexican Art». D. Shevardnadze National Gallery 11, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-80-22 Gallery’s working hours: Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00 till - May 2 Baia Gallery requests the pleasure of your company at the opening of Alexander Mikadze’s exhibition - Stained-Glass Window. Exhibition will be opened on 18.04.2014 at 7 p.m. Baia Gallery 10 Shardeni Str. Tel: 275-45-10 Gallery’s working hours: 12:00-19:00 till - May 1

MAY 2, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Nali BandSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-3221:00 - Agora Live Band, DJ DatunaCity Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band & Maka Durglishvili; DJ Paata Plaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory.

Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia Suramelashvili MacLaren’s Irish Pub 5 rkinis rigi (Chardin) Mob: 599 57 85 4921:30 - Enjoy a unique ambiance of 60s-70s hits and improvisations by David Gabidzashvili and David Barnabishvili. Great mood is guaranteed! Spend evening at the warmest pub in the city!Restaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69Every day from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian Dances Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Maia Baratashvili Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Rustavi 2» (Covers)


5ConcertTbilisi Concert Hall 1, Meliqishvilii Str. Tel: 299-05-9920:00 - The Concert of «Sukhishvilebi» (Ticket price: 15, 20, 25, 30, 40 GEl)

3Theatrerustaveli Theatre17, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 272-68-68America in Bathhouse - premiere Antanas Vilkutaitis-Keturakis Directed by linda Urbona Cast: Andria Tavberidze, Zura Inkorokva, Kakha Kupatadze, Mamuka Loria, Irakli Sanaia, Keti Svanidze, Beka SonghulashviliDate: May 2 Hall: Experimental Stage Time: 19:00 Price: 8, 10 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966love-letters Director: Temur Chkheidze Cast: Nani Chikvinidze, Gia Burjanadze Duration: 120 minutes Date: May 2 Hall: Theatre in Attic Time: 20:00 Price: 11 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Kramer vs. Kramer Director: Davit Chkhartishvili Cast: Nika Kuchava, Natia Nikolaishvili, Sandro Sharashidze, Teona Kokrashvili, Valeri Begalishvili, Gvantsa Korshia, Jano Izoria Date: May 2 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21Honeymoon Director: Maya Doborjginidze Cast: Mariam Jologua, Salome Chulukhadze, Natia Kvashali Date: May 2 Time: 19:00 Price: 6, 9, 11 GElTumanishvili Film Actors Theatre 164 Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 234-28-99Bakula’s pigs Director: Mikheil Tumanishvili Cast: Nineli Chankvetadze, rusudan Bolkvadze, ramaz ioseliani, laura rekhviashvili, Gvantsa Gurgenishvili, Zurab Kipshidze Duration: 100 minutes Date: May 2 Time: 19:00 Price: 10 GEliliauni Theatre32, i. Chavchavadze Ave. Tel: 229-47-15French Dressing Director: Sandro Eloshvili Cast: Nika Giorgadze, Salome Mikadze, Giorgi Tchumburidze, Salome laperadze, Salome Tsurtsumia, Zurab Gabunia Duration: 105 minutes Date: May 2 Time: 20:00 Price: 5 GElGabriadze Theatre 13,Shavteli Str. Tel: 8 790 98-65-91 (MagtiFix), 298-65-90ramona Marionette Theatre Author and Director: rezo Gabriadze +10 years Date: May 2 Time: 20:00 Price: 10, 15, 20 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24Dimitri Shevardnadze National Gallery invites you at the exhibition «Visions of Mexican Art». D. Shevardnadze National Gallery 11, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 299-80-22 Gallery’s working hours: Saturday-Sunday 10:00-18:00 till - May 2

MAY 3, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Nali ZarebiSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-3221:00 - Veriko Turashvili & Live Band, DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band & Nata Kurdovanidze; DJ VakoPlaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia Suramelashvili MacLaren’s Irish Pub 5 rkinis rigi (Chardin) Mob: 599 57 85 4921:30 - Enjoy a unique ambiance of 60s-70s hits and improvisations by David Gabidzashvili and David Barnabishvili. Great mood is guaranteed! Spend evening at the warmest pub in the city!Restaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69Every day from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian Dances Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-3721:00 - Keti Paresashvili Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Rustavi 2» (Covers)


3Theatrerustaveli Theatre

17, rustaveli Ave. Tel: 272-68-68America in Bathhouse - premiere Antanas Vilkutaitis-Keturakis Directed by linda Urbona Cast: Andria Tavberidze, Zura Inkorokva, Kakha Kupatadze, Mamuka Loria, Irakli Sanaia, Keti Svanidze, Beka SonghulashviliDate: May 3 Hall: Experimental Stage Time: 19:00 Price: 8, 10 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Kakutsa Cholokashvili Director: levan Tsuladze Cast: Nika Tavadze, Nika Kuchava, Lela Meburishvili, ioseb Gogichaishvili, Gia Burjanadze, Zura Berikashvili, Dimitri Tatishvili, Zaza iakashvili, roland Okropiridze Duration: 180 minutes Date: May 3 Hall: Big Stage Time: 20:00 Price: 4 - 10.50 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Muu... Director: Zurab Kikodze Cast: Medea Djaparidze, Nana pachuashvili, rusiko Bolkvadze, Qeti Tshakaia, Nato GulisaSvili, Meri Mikeladze Duration: 70 minutes Date: May 3 Hall: Theatre in Attic Time: 20:00 Price: 11 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966My Hamlet Finger Theatre Director: Beso Kupreishvili Cast: Ketevan Tskhakaia, Elene Phirtskhalava, Zaal Kakabadze, Vakhtang Koridze, Giorgi Mebaghishvili Duration: 80 minutes Date: May 3 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21A Clockwork Orange Director: Avto Varsimashvili Cast: Jaba Kiladze, Apolon Kublashvili, Slava Natenadze, Sandro Margalitashvili, Misha Arjevanidze, Ani Aladashvili, Masho Melkadze, lasha Gurgenidze +16 year Duration: 135 minutes Date: May 3 Time: 20:00 Price: 6, 13, 15 GElTumanishvili Film Actors Theatre 164 Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 234-28-99The icarus Director: Nugzar Bagrationi-Gruzinski Cast: Anri Bibineishvili, rezo Tavartkiladze, Ana Matuashvili, Nato Shengelaia, Nika Tserediani, Beka Jumutia, Ana-Maria Gurgenishvili Duration: 80 minutes Date: May 3 Time: 19:00 Price: 7 GElGriboedov Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 293-11-06Freeloader Director: Nugzar lortkipanidze Cast: Dimitry Sporishev, Mikhail Arjevanidze, Nino Meladze, Zurab Chipashvili, Medea Mumladze, Oleg Mchedlishvili Date: May 3 Hall: Small Stage Time: 18:00 Price: 5 GEliliauni Theatre32, i. Chavchavadze Ave. Tel: 229-47-15Witted Woe! Director: Otar Egadze Cast: Vasiko Odishvili, Dato Gigolashvili, Kakha Gogidze, Nika Giorgadze, Soso Mchedlishvili, Maka Dzagania Duration: 90 minutes Date: May 3 Time: 20:00 Price: 5 GElGabriadze Theatre 13,Shavteli Str. Tel: 8 790 98-65-91 (MagtiFix), 298-65-90Autumn of my Springtime Marionette Theatre Author and Director: rezo Gabriadze +10 years Date: May 3 Time: 20:00 Price: 10, 15, 20 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24

MAY 4, 2014

1Clubs, Pubs…Pub Nali 4/1 Kiacheli St. Tel: 243 04 2021:00-00:30 - Nali BandSkyyBar 22 Metekhi Str. Mob: 592 32-32-3221:00 - Agora Live Band, DJ Datuna City Time Leonidze/Machabeli Str. 1/6; Tel: 292 02 1220:00-24:00 - Live Band & Maka Durglishvili; Karaoke, DJ Vako Plaza Hall Beliashvili and Mikeladze streets territory. Tel: 254 05 56; Mob: 599 56 60 72Live music, New Voice participant: Giorgi Modzmanashvili, every day different show programs, famous faces, tam tams, dancers (Georgian and ball dances)/Different programs on Saturday-Sundays Every Friday, inextinguishable star of show business, singer - Gia SuramelashviliRestaurant «Bermukha» Agmashenebeli lane 13th km. Tel: 259 69 69; Mob: 598 59 69 69 Every day from 17:00 restaurant Bermukha is awaiting you with renovated hall and colorful show program. Music program starts from 19:00: Dato Archvadze’s quartet «Taoba»: Georgian folk and city songs. Estrada singers: Giorgi Tsiklauri, Nina Okroashvili, Giorgi Kakutia Restaurant «Dzveli Sakhli» 3, Sanapiro Str. Tel: 2 365-365 20:00-23:00 - Georgian songs with live performance Café «Kala» 8/10 Erekle II Str. Mob: 599 79-97-37 21:00 - Live Band Pub «Dublin» 8 Akhvlediani Str, Tel: 298-44-67 21:00-24:00 - Band «Rustavi 2» (Covers)


3TheatreMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966landscape’s lack of Warmth Director: Dimitri Khvtisiashvili Cast: Eka Chkheidze, Varlam Korshia, lile philphani, Dimitri Tatishvili Duration: 120 minutes Date: May 4 Hall: Theatre in Attic Time: 20:00 Price: 11 GElMarjanishvili Theatre 8 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966University of laugh Director: levan Tsuladze Cast: Nato Murvanidze, Nika Kuchava Duration: 105 minutes Date: May 4 Hall: Big Stage Time: 20:00 Price: 11 GElMarjanishvili Theatre (New Stage) 5 Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 2 955-966Meet You in paradise Director: Sandro Eloshvili Cast: Zurab Berikashvili, Nino Gachechiladze, Guram Jashi, David Khurtsilava, Nodar Doghonadze Duration: 90 minutes Date: May 4 Time: 20:00 Price: 14 GElLiberty Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 298-58-21richard iii Director: Avto Varsimashvili Cast: Sandro Margalitashvili, Jaba Kiladze, Giorgi Jikia, Tamuna Nikoladze, Mariam Jologua, Tiko Kordzadze, Apolon Kublashvili, Goga Barbakadze Date: May 4 Time: 19:00 Price: 6, 13, 15 GElTumanishvili Film Actors Theatre 164 Agmashenebeli Ave. Tel: 234-28-99Spring Will Still Come Director: Nugzar Bagrationi-Gruzinski Cast: Beka Jumutia, Ana Matuashvili Duration: 70 minutes Date: May 4 Time: 19:00 Price: 7 GElGriboedov Theatre 2 rustaveli Ave. Tel: 293-11-06Chipollino Director: Gogi Todadze Cast: Jemal Sikharulidze, Mikhail Arjevanidze, Valentina Voinova, Ludmila Artyomova-Mghebrishvili Duration: 70 minutes Date: May 4 Time: 12:00 Price: 5 GEliliauni Theatre32, i. Chavchavadze Ave. Tel: 229-47-15God of Carnage Director: David Chabashvili Cast: Giorgi Bakhutashvili, Nata Berezhiani, Giorgi Bochorishvili, Maya Khornauli Duration: Black Comedy in 1 Act Date: May 4 Time: 20:00 Price: 10 GElGabriadze Theatre 13,Shavteli Str. Tel: 8 790 98-65-91 (MagtiFix), 298-65-90The Battle of Stalingrad Marionette Theatre Author and Director: rezo Gabriadze in russian +10 years Date: May 4 Time: 20:00 Price: 10, 15, 20 GEl

4GalleryCafe 78 presents A joint event to promote recycling in Georgia through art. Opening of photo exhibition by Uta Bayer. ETHYLENE BLOSSOM meets COOP Cafe 78 33 l. Asatiani Str. Tel: 230 57 85 Open every day 11:00 to 23:00 except Sundays till - May 24

For more information, please, visit the following website: www.info-tbilisi.com


where to go

From Tbilisi TO Day Depart Arrive Flight#

Aktau 5.7 00:50 02:40 DV 842

Amsterdam 1.6 06:10 07:55 A9 651

Almaty 1.2.5.7 22:45;08:55 04:25+1;14:35 KC E90

Athens 1 06:15 07:15 A3 983

Baku X 2.4 01:30;12:10 02:30;13:10 J2 224/226

Baku DAILY 14:50;19:50 16:05;21:05 QR 975/977

Batumi 2.5.7 10:00;14:45 10:40;15:20 CRJ

Doha DAILY 19:50;14:05 23:59;19:00 QR 975/977

Dubai 2.4.6.7 06:50 10:00 FZ 714

Istanbul DAILY 06:20 06:40 PC/463

Istanbul DAILY 05:15;18:15 05:45; 18:45 TK 387/383

Istanbul DAILY 06:20 06:50 KK 320

Kiev X3,5 07:50;17:30 08:20;17:55 PS 728

Minsk DAILY 03:50 06:00 B2 736

Munich DAILY 05:10 06:20 LH 2557

Riga 1.3.6 07:00 08:35 BT 723

Rome 7 05:25 06:40 AZ 551

Tel-Aviv 2.3.4.7 17:25 18:10 A9 695

Vienna 4.7 08:55 09:25 A9 681

Urumqi 2.6 22:40 07:30+1 CZ 6040

Warsaw 2.3.5.7 05:40 06:15 LO 724

Days=( 1-Monday., 2-Tuesday., 3-Wedsday., 4-Thursday., 5-Friday., 6-Saturday., 7-Sunday.

D-Daily; X-except off)

Tel: 2 999 662

SPECIAL OFFER FROM BUSINESSTRAVELCOM

TO SPAIN FROM 220 EURTO GERMANY FROM 225 EUR

TO ITALY FROM 230 EURTO FRANCE FROM 236 EUR

TO UK FROM 269 EURALL TAXES INCLUDES

CALL: 2999 662; 592 07 53 53

SPECIAL OFFER FROM BUSINESSTRAVELCOM TO

WARSAW!!!TICKETS FROM 69 EUR

(TAXES INCLUDED)

5* HOTELS FROM 30 EUR (BREAKFAST INCLUDED)

CALL: 2 999 662; 592 07 53 53


C M Y K

green business



C M Y K

3 Vashlovani Str.;(“Super Babilon” oposit)

Tel.: 298 90 86

SANCHO

23, Akhvlediani Str. Tel: 298 25 98

DISCOVERY

40, Chavchavadze Ave. Tel: 229 42 30

24/24

PICASSO

4, Vashlovani Str.Tel: 298 90 86

64, Paliasvili Str.Tel: 225 06 69

# 20 Shavteli Str. Tel: 293 10 80

Hangar Bar

Better seen than heard

16, Akhvlediani Str. Tel: 293 60 52

BUFFALO BILL

Red Café - Bistro & Cafe

# 71 Vazha-phavela Ave.Tel: 2201 211

[email protected]

VERA STEAKHOUSE

37, Kostava Str.Tel: 298 37 67

Segafredo Zanetti Espresso

26, Chavchavadze Ave

Tel: 222 36 77

TSISKVILI

Beliashvili Str. Tel: 253 07 97

Better seen than heard

DUBLIN IRISH PUB

8, Akhvlediani Str.Tel: 298 44 67

PREGO10, Paliashvili Str. Tel: 225 22 58

15, Erekle II. Tel: 293 14 11

25, Tarkhnishvili Str. Tel: 225 25 16

2, MarjaniSvili Str. Tel: 2 999 723

41, Gamsakhurdia Str.Tel: 237 96 88

SIANG-GAN

Prospero’s Books34, rustaveli Ave. Tel: (+995 32) 2923 592

ENGLISH TEE HOUSE

5, Marjanishvili Str. Tel: 294 16 20

32, Paliashvili Str.Tel: 222 11 09

Belle Ville

French - European bar-restaurant pleasant and cozy atmosphere High quality service, live music every day

26, l.Kiacheli Str. Tel: 293 65 53

Entree

13 Taktakishvili Str.20 Rustaveli Ave.19 Petriashvili Str.

7 Pekini Str.78 Chavchavadze Ave.

(Bagebi)86 Aghmashenebeli ave.

Tel.: 599 21 53 83

DONUTS

10/12, Abashidze Str. Tel: 225 39 85

LITERATURULI CAFÉ

2, Tarkhnishvili Str.Tel: 244 45 46

31, Pekini Str.Tel: 231 30 57

22, Abashidze Str.Tel: 222 02 7636, Kostava Str.Tel: 299 07 46

For advertising

please contact:

577 741 [email protected]

BUSINESSTRAVELCOMHOTEL AND AIRTICKET BOOKING: 2 999 662 | SKY.GE

4, Besiki Str.

Tel: 2 519 966

QUEUE

#1 Freedom squ.Tel: 2 240 241

dining| places we strongly reccommend to visit |

Book Corner

13b, Tarkhnishvili Str.Tel: 223 24 30

[email protected]


16, Marjanishvili Str.Tel: 555 211552

Espresso Bar “RESPUBLIKA”


C M Y K

green business


Documents

Green Biz 2014