Georgia – EU Strategic Investments

Georgia – EU Strategic Investments

Abstract

According to several international rankings, Georgia ranks as one of the easiest countries to do business with. The country of Georgia is located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe. It has a small open market that actively engages in international trade, its key sectors being tourism and transportation. Since 1991, the country has actively run economic reforms that have produced a relatively well-functioning and stable market economy. 

Since 2005, Georgia has moved from 112th place in the World Bank’s Doing Business indicators to seventh place worldwide, ranked 12th in the 2021 Economic Freedom Index by the Heritage Foundation, 8th in the Economic Freedom of the World Index by Frazer Institute, and 45th in the Corruption Perception Index by the Transparency International.  

The E.U. and Georgia signed an Association Agreement in 2014, which entered fully into force in July 2016. This agreement provides the foundations for political association and economic integration. Key benefits building blocks from this relationship include a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), which opens the E.U. market to Georgian businesses and products, and visa-free travel to the Schengen area for Georgian citizens since 28 March 2017. The European Union is Georgia’s largest investor and provides over €120 million worth of grants supporting Georgia’s ambitious reform agenda. 

Georgia also has a strong relationship with China and the United States. Tbilisi is the only government in the Caspian region to secure an FTA with Beijing and the only country in the world to implement both a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) with the European Union and an FTA with China. 

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