During the last 12 months, the Georgian authorities have been conducting interesting experiments designed, so it seems, to test the resilience of domestic beer producers. In September 2014, the industry was hit by Article 171 of the Civil Code, prohibiting alcohol consumption in public places. The beer market, 97% of which is supplied by local producers, has immediately shrunk by 22% (in physical volume, see chart), in annual terms.

It is well known that government intervention, be it through taxation or regulation, can obstruct the functioning of markets. Yet there is another kind of influence that may also have strong effects on the efficiency of an economy but is much less discussed, namely the set of values, traditions, and moral standards a society subscribes to.

On February 22, 2013, Professor Michele Bernasconi (Università “CàFoscari”, Venice, Italy) presented his paper “Tax Evasion: Does fiscal pressure matter? Lessons from the behavioral economics”, which was co-authored by Luca Corazzini and Raffaello Seri, to ISET students, researchers, and faculty.