The growth forecast for the 2nd quarter of 2014 has been revised upward from 7.5% to 7.7%. The growth forecast for the 3rd quarter of 2014 has been revised upward from 7.1% to 7.5%.

The growth forecast for the third quarter of 2014 has been targeted at 7.1%. Meanwhile, Geostat has released the GDP growth rate for the first quarter of 2014 and its preliminary estimates for April. These are 7.4% and 2.7% respectively. The April growth rate seems to be very low in relation to our forecast, but this low growth figure is most likely due to the relatively high GDP increase in April last year.

One day in my village, I saw our neighbors carrying TV sets, refrigerators, parabolic antennas, and washing machines out of their house. Soon I found out that they were hiding all that stuff from the Social Service Agency (SSA) that was about to check eligibility for social benefits. Later, when I spoke with some other villagers, it turned out that some families had even sold their cows to become eligible for social assistance.

BP in Georgia has implemented a number of projects related to renewable energy and energy efficiency through its Sustainable Development Initiative. The projects are designed to raise awareness about energy efficiency and provide subsidies for households to implement energy efficiency measures. In addition, several social programs related to increasing the efficiency of energy use and renewable energy have been implemented over the last four years.

The subject of the debate concerned future steps to be taken in to ensure the growth of SME's in Georgia - significant part of the economy. The expert panel included speakers representing government, SMEs, financial system, academia, NGOs, businesses and business associations. The importance of SMEs for economic development cannot be understated: most successful large firms in developing countries have graduated up from SME category, whereas the breadth of the SME category itself reflects and helps to create a strong and deep entrepreneurial culture.