Poverty rate hits record low 9.4% in Georgia, PM Kobakhidze aims for 4% by 2028

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday addressed Parliament, underscoring the critical importance of economic growth translating directly into poverty reduction, which he identified as a paramount national challenge for the country.

During his annual report, the Prime Minister acknowledged that the poverty rate in Georgia remained high, stressing that a primary objective was to significantly decrease the level of poverty alongside sustained economic growth.

“In this regard, we had impressive results in 2024. Specifically, in 2024, 90,000 people escaped poverty. I want to remind you of the situation in 2012, when more than 1,100,000 people in Georgia were living below the poverty line, while the media controlled by the previous [UNM] Government was reporting that the country was flourishing and citizens were happy. More than 1,100,000 people lived below the poverty line. The poverty rate was 30 percent, and this figure has decreased from more than 1,100,000 to 350,000. Of course, this is still a high number. This is one of our major national challenges, when 350,000 of our fellow citizens live below the poverty line”, the PM said.

Kobakhidze emphasised that his Government was making steady progress and aimed to completely eliminate poverty in the medium term, with the continuation of strong economic growth serving as a key guarantee.

“We have a very good pace, and we believe that ultimately, in the medium term, we will be able to completely eradicate poverty in our country. The guarantee for this will be maintaining the pace of economic growth. In 2024, poverty in our country amounted to 9.4 percent. For the first time, a single-digit figure was recorded, which is very important”, he continued.

“In 2023, the poverty rate was 11.8 percent, and this rate decreased by 2.4 percentage points. We also have an ambitious goal here - by 2028, we want poverty in our country to decrease to a maximum of 4 percent. Considering the current pace, this result is absolutely achievable”, Kobakhidze concluded.