Georgian PM attributes strong economic growth to anti-corruption efforts

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Sunday said that Georgia’s economic growth in the first half of the year has significantly exceeded the initial forecast of the International Monetary Fund, attributing the country’s ability to maintain rapid growth partly to the elimination of corruption.

Speaking to journalists, Kobakhidze said that the latest economic figures demonstrate the resilience of Georgia’s economic system and argued that the elimination of corruption, particularly at higher levels of government, has contributed to maintaining and increasing the pace of growth.

“The economic growth data for the first six months have already been published, and they significantly exceed the initial forecast of the International Monetary Fund. One of the main reasons why we have managed to maintain a rapid pace of economic growth is the elimination of corruption”, Kobakhidze said.

The Prime Minister noted that Georgia recorded 8.6% economic growth in the previous month, while average growth over the first six months reached 7.9%.

“Last month, our economic growth was 8.6%, and the average growth over six months amounted to 7.9%, which is a much higher figure than what the IMF and other financial institutions had forecast at the beginning of the year”, he said.

“You know that corruption has been completely eliminated at the upper levels, and this directly contributes to maintaining the pace of economic growth and increasing it further”, the Prime Minister continued.

Kobakhidze added that Georgia’s stronger-than-expected economic performance provided grounds for the IMF to revise and raise its initial growth forecast.