Baltic States – CIS, EU – Baltic States, Forum, Investments, Latvia, Markets and Companies

Speaking about the undertaking he made to improve mutual economic and transit cooperation between Latvia and Georgia during his recent visit to the country, the minister pointed out that there is already good cooperation and exchange of investments between Georgia and Latvia. This was shown during the recent Latvia-Georgia business forum in Riga, where there was much interest in Georgia in many different areas, as well as investment opportunities in the country.

''Represented at this forum were Georgian companies which are already successfully operating in Latvia in various sectors – manufacturing, financial, agriculture, tourism etc. We see promise also in the area of trade and logistics. Georgia is a good place for Latvian companies to develop their operations and ensure the export of goods in our region. We also discussed the development of cooperation in the area of transportation and trade as well,'' the minister said.

Janelidze said that the Georgian government fully understands that it is necessary to form closer links with the private sector. ''There is the necessary political support from the government, but the rest is in the hands of the business representatives themselves, who have to find mutually beneficial projects,'' he said.

The minister also confirmed that the Georgian government is ready to support investment projects, as well as opportunities in the tourism sector, which Georgia plans to develop. ''We have opportunities in the production sector, as Georgia has free-trade agreements not only with the EU, but also Turkey and countries within the Commonwealth of Independent States. We have also opened a dialogue with China,'' he said.

The politician emphasized that because of this, Georgia can offer Latvian entrepreneurs an extensive range of markets for exports. ''We see much potential also in the services, business, information and communication technologies and innovation sectors as well,'' he added.