Georgia: The chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Irakli Garibashvili, delivered a speech at the party’s meeting, highlighting the country’s achievements in the past ten years of its governance.
Garibashvili claimed that Georgia had undergone a fantastic transformation from a dictatorial and oppressive regime to a democratic and prosperous state, ranking among the top 10 countries in the world in various indicators.
Garibashvili said that the country’s economy had grown three times since 2012, reaching 86 billion GEL in 2024 and that unemployment and poverty levels had reached historic lows. He also said that more than half a million people had escaped poverty thanks to the massive reforms the Georgian Dream government carried out in various sectors, such as economy, agriculture, health care, education, social equality, judiciary and media freedom.
Garibashvili also boasted about the country’s progress in the Euro-Atlantic integration, saying that Georgia had signed the Association Agreement, the free trade deal and the visa-free regime with the European Union and had received the candidate status in December 2023. He also said that Georgia had strengthened its cooperation with NATO and had contributed to regional and international security and stability.
Garibashvili cited the studies of authoritative international organizations as evidence of the impressive progress of Georgia, saying that the country was a leader in the region and the world on many fronts, such as the rule of law, corruption and freedom, economic freedom, independence of the court, responsible and effective government, transparency of budget, access to finance, market access and innovations.
He also credited the founder of the Georgian Dream party, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, for bringing continuous peace and stability to the country.
Garibashvili’s speech comes ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for October 2024, in which the Georgian Dream party seeks to secure its fourth consecutive victory.
The main opposition party, the United National Movement, has accused the Georgian Dream government of failing to deliver on its promises, undermining democracy and human rights, and appeasing Russia.
