These are Georgian churchkhela, a kind of national candy made from a string of walnut halves dipped in grape juice thickened with flour (Tatara or Phelamushi) and dried in the sun. There are essentially 2-3 kinds of Churchkhela. Somebody may be better in making them, somebody worse, but all in all, it is the same stuff sold all over Georgia.

On April 8, representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) presented their Transition Report at ISET. EBRD’s lead economist for Georgia, Bojan Markovic, spoke about the reform progress and economic developments in the year 2013 across the wider transition region, which includes Georgia.

A few weeks ago, the Israeli ambassador His Excellency Yuval Fuchs delivered a speech at ISET, explaining the amazing transformation of Israel from what essentially was an agricultural state into what many economists call a knowledge economy. The ambassador reported that in his youth the foremost product Israel was known for were oranges. In the last thirty years, however, Israel created a high-tech sector that can compete (and in many aspects surpasses) the high-tech industries of the United States and Europe.

After many years on the back burner of the policy discussion in Georgia, issues related to agriculture and rural development now seem to be at the forefront of debate. And for good reason, as these issues are incredibly complex and have important implications, not only for those residing in rural areas but also for those purchasing agricultural products in towns and cities.

The growth forecast for the 1st quarter of 2014 has been revised upward from 5.3% to 7.3%. The growth forecast for the 2nd quarter of 2014 has been targeted at 7.0%. Meanwhile, Geostat has released an official quarterly growth GDP rate for the last quarter of 2013 and it is quite impressive 7.1%.