This paper examines the status of SME finance in Georgia and the involvement of Georgian SMEs in global value chains. The role of SMEs in Georgia’s economy, SME funding, and the status of financial inclusion for SMEs are analyzed. Moreover, the level of financial literacy and skills of SME entrepreneurs is discussed. 

Furthermore, the paper analyzes the Georgian agricultural sector’s value chain and the involvement of this sector in global value chains by discussing the case study of the hazelnut. An analysis of the agricultural sector’s value chain financing in Georgia is carried out, its availability and development are discussed, and best practices of value chain financing are analyzed. 

Based on existing information, the paper identifies barriers to SME finance in Georgia and proposes policy recommendations and immediate actions with regard to existing government policies.

The main objective of the research is to study the extent to which the measurement of progress and the use of measurement data play a role in Georgian policymaking. 

The research was conducted by PMC Research in collaboration with People in Need, as part of the EU project “Regional Civil Society Organizations Supporting Free Trade with Europe.”

The study aims to map and analyze the private sector in Tbilisi, Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region (Senaki, Zugdidi, Tsalenjikha, and Poti municipalities) and Kvemo Kartli region (Marneuli municipality).

The assessment methodology entailed a combination of desk research and qualitative study. During the desk research, the size of the market in each of the target regions was studied and, by using the economic potential component of the Smart Specialization methodology, a private sector assessment was conducted. Smart Specialization is an approach that has been elaborated by the European Union (EU), and is widely used when analyzing national and regional competitiveness.

Under this approach, we have identified vital economic sectors (concentrated and competitive economic sectors) for the targeted regions, by using regional analysis methods such as location quotient (LQ) and shift-share analysis. With the help of shift-share analyses, competitive sectors for the targeted regions were identified, while concentrated sectors were identified by using LQ. After identifying concentrated and competitive sectors for targeted regions, the sectors which were both concentrated and competitive were chosen. If there was no such sector in a given location, then sectors were selected based on the shift-share analysis results. In addition, by applying enterprise birth and survival analysis, we identified economically active sub-sectors within each selected sector.

Within the scope of the research, existing municipal social programs have been evaluated, the core challenges were identified, and the recommendations were elaborated for the local and central authorities.

The purposes of this policy paper are to present the priorities of the Government of Georgia (GoG) in economic diplomacy, to map economic diplomacy institutions, and to describe their functions. It also aims to present practical cases of conducting economic diplomacy. Case studies of selected EU Member States which have assigned strategic importance to economic diplomacy in achieving their economic development goals are presented and these contribute to the elaboration of recommendations for Georgia.

The aim of the project is to study the impact of the BRI on the countries of Central Asia and the South Caucasus (CASC) and ascertain how these countries individually and through regional cooperative efforts can maximize the benefits of the BRI and manage any potential risks.

PMC Research, in cooperation with regional civil society organizations of the Kakheti region, conducted value chain analysis on blackberry with an emphasis on the export potential to the European Union market.

PMC Research, in cooperation with regional civil society organizations of the Imereti region, conducted value chain analysis on tomato with an emphasis on the export potential to the European Union market.

PMC Research, in cooperation with regional civil society organizations of the Samegrelo region, conducted value chain analysis on laurel with an emphasis on the export potential to the European Union market.