The Georgian Government has been working with the country’s international partners and financial institutions to transform Georgia into the regional transport, logistics and digital hub, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told the Global Gateway Forum on Wednesday in Brussels.
In his speech as the keynote speaker at a working panel session on transport corridors hosted within the framework of the Forum, Garibashvili highlighted Georgia’s strategic geographic location – “being at the crossroads of Europe and Asia” – as one of the country’s “strongest assets”.
He emphasised “an enhanced connectivity” as a “priority” of Georgia’s domestic agenda and noted despite not having a land board with the European Union, Georgia had “untapped opportunities” across the Black Sea that would “firmly link” the country with the bloc and allow it to “use the full potential of integration into the EU single market”.
Given the ever-growing importance of diversifying and expanding East-West trade, the Middle Corridor across Georgia is becoming a viable alternative to existing routes connecting Europe and Asia. With enhanced infrastructure capabilities, streamlined processes and competitive costs, the importance of this corridor is growing”, Garibashvili noted, adding his Government focused “heavily” on the development of the major infrastructure to support Georgia’s position as a regional centre for trade and logistics.
The Head of the Government cited several infrastructure projects, including the Black Sea submarine electricity cable project, which will create transit opportunities and back-to-back trade options of green, renewable energy between the EU and the South Caucasus via Georgia.
Garibashvili also highlighted the construction of a deep sea port in the country’s Black Sea town of Anaklia, aimed to increase Georgia’s ability to transport large amounts of cargo, the improvement of the main highways and the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway to increase Georgia’s transit potential, and building a new international airport in Tbilisi to position the country as “an important participant in the global aviation sector”.
He also noted the Government was “proactively exploring new initiatives” within the renewable energy sector, including hydro, wind, solar and other sustainable sources, adding major pipelines across Georgia, such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Supsa oil pipelines and the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline ensured “safe transportation” of hydrocarbons from Central Asia to Europe.
The role of our development partners in implementation of the aforementioned projects is paramount, of course. Among others, the European Investment Bank is one of the leading financial institutions, which supports Georgia and aligns with our priorities”, the PM said.
Garibashvili thanked Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, for inviting and hosting him at the Forum, noting the platform aimed to “form partnerships”, which would be “a strong catalyst for ensuring sustainability”.
Source : Agenda
