On May 29, in the program “Sum-up of the Day with Nikoloz Mzhavanadze” on Sezoni TV, the host Nikoloz Mzhavanadze spoke about the Anaklia seaport and foreign investments in Georgia. According to Mzhavanadze, members of the United National Movement made a fuss about the construction of the seaport in Anaklia by a Chinese company, although Europeans and Americans did not invest in Georgia during the rule of Mikheil Saakashvili. Mzhavanadze also claimed that only Russians, Azerbaijanis, and Chinese made investments in Georgia.
The claim that Western countries did not invest in Georgia during the presidency of Mikheil Saakashvili is false. Between 2004 and 2012, European countries and the USA made large foreign direct investments (FDIs) in Georgia. Another false claim is that only Russia, Azerbaijan, and China have invested in Georgia. According to data for 2023, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Turkey are the largest foreign investors, with Russia, Azerbaijan, and China ranking fifth, seventh, and eighth, respectively.
According to the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat), the leaders by the size of FDI in Georgia in 2023, according to preliminary data, are the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Turkey. The top ten countries also include the USA and Russia. The other two countries named by Mzhavanadze, Azerbaijan and China, are ranked eights and ninths, respectively.
The data for 2022 is not much different. According to the Geostat report, the United Kingdom, Spain, the Netherlands, the US, and Ireland were the main investors in 2022, according to the verified data. In the same year, Russia ranked seventh and China ranked ninth. Azerbaijan invested USD 1.7 million that year and was not among the top ten.
In 2021, fewer investments were made in Georgia due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, even in this case, the United Kingdom was the largest investor. The top five also included the Netherlands, Turkey, the Czech Republic, and Russia.
Nikoloz Mzhavanadze also claimed that Europe and the USA did not make investments during the presidency of Mikheil Saakashvili. In fact, the data from that period shows that the United Kingdom and other European countries, as well as the United States, made significant investments in Georgia. In addition to them, Turkey was regularly on the list of major investors.
Countries |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
UK |
85,009 |
131,546 |
174,535 |
133,178 |
148,179 |
72,439 |
62,336 |
57,216 |
95,536 |
USA |
80,753 |
15,088 |
100,833 |
68,439 |
167,920 |
-10,026 |
141,210 |
35,291 |
20,254 |
Turkey |
33,326 |
21,519 |
126,790 |
79,510 |
167,403 |
97,984 |
91,786 |
77,708 |
107,222 |
Russia |
43,165 |
40,124 |
30,987 |
75,162 |
26,212 |
10,253 |
50,974 |
58,017 |
22,017 |
Azerbaijan |
66,883 |
64,704 |
71,021 |
19,766 |
23,371 |
29,923 |
62,859 |
69,454 |
61,287 |
China |
7,338 |
5,668 |
5,445 |
6,028 |
-2,271 |
-2,237 |
-7,782 |
30,382 |
70,156 |
France |
22,592 |
14,121 |
15,679 |
37,484 |
8,179 |
11,958 |
-7,820 |
7,353 |
25,863 |
Netherlands |
35.6 |
632.0 |
69,405 |
274,706 |
138,706 |
34,325 |
73,008 |
244,536 |
34,210 |
Germany |
5,513 |
6,217 |
19,472 |
51,898 |
40,590 |
21,345 |
12,848 |
46,570 |
142,405 |
FDIs in Georgia by country (USD 1,000). Source: Geostat
Discussions about the Anaklia deep-water seaport intensified after it became known on May 29 that a Chinese consortium would take part in the construction of the seaport. Read more about this matter in the article:
The Myth Detector has also, in the past, checked information about FDIs in Georgia. Read more in the article:
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