“With the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), humanity has entered a new phase. The 4IR has become the lived reality for millions of people around the world, and is creating new opportunities for business, government and individuals” – Klaus Schwab, Founder, and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum.

After three consecutive quarters of improvement, BCI in the third quarter of 2018 has worsened, dropping to 35.4 index points, which is a 4.2 index point loss over the previous quarter. The BCI drop is based on lowering expectations and worsening of past performance in many business sectors. Compared to other sectors, manufacturing assessed their past performance and expectations the most pessimistically. In contrast, the agriculture sector is the most positive, reflecting a high season in production.

This volume brings together eight case studies of young Georgian entrepreneurs, men and women who had the courage to take a risk and set up their own businesses. The eight case studies allow readers to accompany these entrepreneurs on the challenging journey of doing business in a very difficult environment, with very limited access to finance, knowledge and modern technology.

Between July 17 and 18, Maka Chitanava, the Deputy Head of the EEPRC, attended the 3rd Central Asian Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Think Tanks Development Forum in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Representatives from university think tanks, governments, and business circles came from every CAREC member country.

According to Geostat’s rapid estimates of GDP growth, Georgia’s economy continues expanding at a moderately high pace, reaching 5.2% in the first quarter of 2018. GDP growth was mainly driven by an enhanced external environment, improved business confidence, credit expansion, and fiscal stimulus. Geostat’s Q1 growth figure is higher than the National Bank of Georgia’s (NBG) 4.8% projection for annual growth in 2018 but falls behind ISET PI’s annual GDP growth forecast of 5.7%.