Saakashvili on Economic Difficulties

Georgia’s economy survived in the August war, while the Russian one “almost collapsed,” President Saakashvili said on December 15.

“We have passed through the August war so that Russia’s economy has almost collapsed, while Georgia’s economy has undergone almost no changes in September and October,” he said. “In mid-November the world economic crisis entered into Georgia with its full scale. The world has not seen such crisis since [19]30s. The world credit system is paralyzed and it will certainly have a serious influence on Georgia.”

Saakashvili was speaking at a meeting with workers from the steelworks plant in Rustavi. The meeting, which was televised live, was part of the series of the President’s recent meetings with various groups, including entrepreneurs and farmers. In the previous meetings, President Saakashvili was also speaking about the same matter, saying that the word financial crisis should be mainly blamed for the Georgia’s economic difficulties, not the August war.

“I do not want to cheat you,” he told the plant workers. “I will not tell you that there are rosy perspectives ahead of us. The next six months will be very difficult for Georgia’s economy but afterwards the tendencies will improve. Today our key task is to save and maintain our economy.”

“If in a year, starting from today, we all say that we have managed to save and maintain our economy, this will mean that Georgia has taken the first big step towards victory. If in two years we say that economic growth is back and that Georgia has overcome the current crisis, it will mean that all the perspectives will be opened for us, because the way towards Georgia’s territorial integration, towards better future passes through how we will manage to maintain and strengthen our state and our economy,” he said.
 
“We have not rejected any of our strategic tasks; simply the existing difficulties have changed our plans.”

He also said that his administration had “a plan, we have a vision.”

“We have reshuffled the government in order to bring new energy – many officials simply got tired of those great challenges, which we faced for last years and in recent months.  Now it is time for mobilization and vigorous efforts,” Saakashvili said.

The President said that the authorities were working on opening new markets for the Georgian products. In this context, he said that he had discussed the issue of free trade agreement with U.S. Senator, John Kerry, who visited Tbilisi on December 13.

“We will receive free trade agreement with the United States,” Saakashvili said. “This is a very important agreement. Nobody throughout this region has such agreement. U.S. Senator John Kerry has recently visited Georgia and we have discussed this issue in details that in the near future we will receive free trade agreement with the United States.”

He also said that the authorities were working on having similar agreement with the European Union.  

Saakashvili said that later on Monday he planned a meeting with lawmakers from his ruling National Movement Party to discuss a package of economic initiatives.

“I will instruct them, together with the government, to develop a legislative and financial package for saving the economy in order to make our way through. I will not let any official put his head into the sand like an ostrich. This is the main challenge, which each state official is facing today,” he said.

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