Georgia Governance Index 2022: Key Findings
Georgia Governance Index (GGI) is a comprehensive study prepared by the Georgian Institute of Politics (GIP), analyzing Georgia’s 2022 performance in four key governance areas, including democracy and human rights, effective state and state institutions, social and economic policies, and foreign and security policy.
According to the most recent study, democratic and effective governance remain the country’s top challenges in 2022, while Georgia performs relatively better in social and economic policy.
The context-specific, country-focused annual report relies on both qualitative and quantitative techniques, including an Expert Survey conducted among forty Georgian experts working in different domains.
Key Findings
- Democratic Governance
According to the report, the main obstacles to democratic governance in the nation include the country’s recurrent political crises, the inability to reform the judiciary, violence against journalists, and Georgia’s failure to receive EU candidate status due to its democratic backsliding.
One-party rule, polarization, radicalization, a lack of checks and balances, the abolishment of the State Inspector’s Office, revisions to Georgia’s Criminal Procedure Code, and contentious amendments to law on wiretapping are among the current and past issues facing the country, according to GIP.
Regarding the CSOs in the GGI index, their ranking has dropped “surprisingly,” which may be connected to the increasing polarization and radicalization as well as the “demonizing” campaigns against them.
- 01/02/2023 – Media Coalition Denounces ‘Discrediting Campaign’ Against Journalists as Unacceptable
- 31/01/2023 – CSOs Assess 2022 Amendments to Election Code
GIP also discusses the country’s improvements, including the changes to the law regarding the Prosecutor General’s election, and the Electoral Code amendments that provide for electronic voting beginning in 2024.
- Effective Governance
The GIP identifies elite corruption and state capture as the main barriers to efficient governance in Georgia, noting that they are “intertwined with the informal rule” of the country. In this context, the CSO notes that “informal rule remains to be the main obstacle to effective governance. Moreover, before 2022 the informal rule was a serious challenge mainly for domestic political development, while in 2022 it has become one of the main challenges for the country’s European integration.”
Also, due to issues with territorial integrity and particular social groups as well [referring to the Orthodox Church of Georgia and the radical right], the state still lacks the monopoly on “legitimate violence.”
The GIP observes that experts have once again given the state services’ accessibility a favorable evaluation. The public sector still lacks skilled personal and political neutrality, but the Civil Service Bureau has taken steps to address the problem.
- Social & Economic Policies
Georgia has received the highest score, among the four areas of study, for social and economic governance. This is the result of “managing the COVID-19 pandemic, more balanced budget, and taking steps to balance the prices of pharmaceuticals.”
The unemployment rate has improved but remains a significant problem, the GIP notes, adding that as a result of Russians’ influx into the country, the perception of inequality as well as the dependence on tourism and money transfers have increased. “This makes the Georgian economy vulnerable to foreign shocks,” the GIP concluded.
Among other improvements, the survey discovered that experts had a favorable opinion of the introduction of the diagnosis-related group (DRG) funding model in the healthcare industry.
- Foreign & Security Policy
With regard to Georgia’s foreign relations against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, “the country found it difficult to adapt to the dynamic environment and to manage the opportunities reasonably,” the study says.
GIP added that the main challenges in 2022 included “partially confrontational relations with Ukraine and Western Partners,” failing to secure the EU candidacy, moving away from the Associated Trio, and responding to the challenges coming from Russia in a “partially optimal way.”
Receiving European perspective, strengthening Georgia’s role as an energy and transport corridor, and “mediating in the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict” are viewed as highlights of the previous year.
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