Georgian Economic Outlook – the First Half of 2011

On September 23, the Economic Policy Research Center released the first issue of Georgian Economic Outlook, a quarterly report, which provides analysis of economic conditions in Georgia in the first half of 2011.  The financial support for the report was provided by the Open Society Georgia Foundation (OSGF).

The major popic of the first issue is Inequality and Gini Coefficient. The so-called Gini Coefficient (named after Italian Statistician Corrado Gini) is the most widely used and understandable indicator for measuring income equality of the population. Low indicator of Gini Coefficient means high income equality in a society.

According to the report, currently, Georgia’s Gini coefficient equals 40.8 (per cent).  To help better assess the picture, the research compares Georgia’s indicator with that of other countries. The Georgian indicator closely resembles the coefficients of Latin American countries (Venezuela 43.4, Uruguay 47.1, Columbia 58.5), characterized by the absence or a small size of middle class.  Scandinavian countries have an indicator of around 25, while the continent of Africa is characterized by a relatively high indicator (around 70). Even within the region, where the post-Soviet countries likewise have high indicator, Georgia still outweighs some of its neighbors in terms of inequality: Armenia’s Gini coefficient is 30.2. However, has a lower inequality as compared to Russian Federation (43.7), and Turkey (41.2).

In the future the quarterly report of the Economic Policy Research Center will cover other issues as well.  “Currently there is no independent economic publication that provides expert evaluation of the economic development of the country.  This is our first attempt.  Hence, we will quarterly offer comprehensive analysis of the economic situation”, said Kakha Ugulava, the President of the Economic Policy Research Center.

Each issue will focus on a major theme that will be further overviewed in details. At the same time, each issue will cover such crucial aspects of the economy as: Gross Domestic Product, Gross National Income, Consumer Price Indices, Inflation and Unemployment, Foreign Trade and Foreign Direct Investments, Consolidated Budget of the country, Fiscal and Monetary Policies, Banking Sector, as well as Georgian Economy from the world perspective.

“Quarterly reports will analyze the economic indicators of the country and development trends.  Apart from the analysis, the organization will provide recommendations for improvement for both the authorities and political parties as well as other stakeholders.  We hope that this report will be a reliable source for experts and international community to consider the economic condition of the country”, said Keti Khutsishvili, the OSGF Executive Director. 

The publications are prepared as part of the Institutional Support Project of the Open Society Institute.
The guide is available in the Georgian and English languages.