Businessman Irakli Rukhadze: Georgia has open business environment, strong anti-corruption record

Irakli Rukhadze, businessman and founder of Hunnewell Partners, as well as owner of TV company Imedi, on Friday said Georgia was maintaining an open business environment and was performing strongly on international corruption indices.

In his remarks, Rukhadze noted that the country’s corruption index was measured through large-scale national assessments, which show that Georgia has achieved very good results.

“I arrived this morning at seven and haven’t fully caught up with what’s going on. The corruption index is measured, and according to the extensive national surveys, we have a very good standing. The business community doesn’t really see this as a major problem. We have a strong anti-corruption record. Georgia has a completely open business environment - there are many businesspeople who support the opposition, and they don’t talk about corruption. I know many of them personally. When only the government talks about corruption and businesses don’t see or experience it, I first need to understand who was involved and what exactly happened. It hasn’t affected me, nor has it affected opposition-linked businesses”, he said.

When asked about a claim by a 40% shareholder of one company alleging that former Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze had requested a bribe while in office, Rukhadze said he had just learned of the allegation and described it as “very bad”.

“That’s terrible, truly awful - I’m hearing about it for the first time, and it’s very bad. Yes, there may be such a case, but it’s the only one I’ve heard of. I’m not saying corruption doesn’t exist; I’m saying that the business community doesn’t see it as widespread. That’s reflected in the corruption index data collected through interviews. Opposition businesses aren’t complaining about corruption, and I find that interesting. Corruption has two sides - it’s not only about the one who takes, but also the one who gives. So we need to understand who was involved and how. Of course, it’s terrible - corruption hinders everything. I just want to understand what kind of corruption we’re talking about. Why doesn’t the business sector discuss it? That’s what interests me. As for me, I don’t talk about it because I haven’t encountered it”, Rukhadze concluded.