United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) conducted a study in May-July of this year and prepared the relevant report - The Impact of Covid-19 on Trade and Structural Transformation in Georgia. The study positively assesses the measures implemented by the Government of Georgia to eliminate the effects of the pandemic. “The study notes that Georgia is at a leading position among the trade reformers in the region, and the assessment showed that “Georgian Government has outperformed itself in its efforts to cushion the impact of supply chain disruptions. It limited trade restrictions to the minimum; was quick to expand the suite of trade facilitation measures available to enterprises; and, launched sweeping relief measures, such as credit schemes, tax deferrals and one-time cash injections, for supporting the vulnerable segments of the population, particularly in the rural areas, and hardest hit sectors”.
The report provides recommendation to the Government and highlights the increased role of the trade in development of the strong and sustainable economic in post-COVID-19 pandemic period.
The report highlights that the Government used NTMs for achieving the twin objective of containing the spread of the pandemic and generating efficiency gains throughout international supply chains. With that objective, the Government limited restrictive NTMs to the minimum and upscaled trade facilitation measures as follows:
The report also gives positive evaluation if the Georgian Government’s relief and support measures highlighting that the MSME might face much worse crises without the Government’s large-scale supportive measures which included the following:
The assessment draws on a survey of 330 MSMEs from across the Georgia, including 226 manufacturing enterprises and 104 farmers involved in on-farm food processing, harvesting and husbandry activities.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) is one of the five regional commissions under the jurisdiction of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. It was established in order to promote economic cooperation and integrations among its Member States. The Commission is composed of 56 Member States, most of which are based in Europe, as well as a few outside of Europe.
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