Greetings!
I was here several years ago and I remember that nasty, unaesthetic zone, where only old cadre worked. You probably remember that I almost fired all the Government for the conditions that existed here.
One can notice really surprising progress in comparison with that period.
Despite the impressive progress that Georgia has shown during recent years in terms of improvement of business environment and fight with corruption, there still are many deficiencies in the relations between entrepreneurs and the State.
You meet with them every day and you know better than me that many entrepreneurs still have a feeling that the State does not listen to them appropriately and treat them unfair; still often are cases when punishment is bigger than violation.
Entrepreneur often fairly have a feeling that the State does not do enough for further improvement of the business environment. Due to this plenty of businesspersons have lost a feeling of stability and avoid business risks, correspondingly they do not invest new capital for business expansion and do not create new working places. Plenty of those who could start business, avoid it, as in their imagination it is connected with humiliation, walking about, rude attitude, etc.
Future of Georgia rests on the shoulders of entrepreneurs, small and medium-sized businesses, businesspersons. It is not in vain that I am walking around Georgia and open one economical zone after another. I personally carry projects and implement them. One can ask, why do we need a hotel, while we have so many needy people in our country, but in order to decrease indigence and our people live better, we have to waken entrepreneurial spirit and create many small and medium-sized businesses as finally, they create wealth of our country.
It is very important for our people and our country to make entrepreneurs comfortable; to create fair environment around them; to make hem confident. Only such entrepreneurs can create new jobs, create national wealth, assist progress of the country and achievement of its place in the World. This will happen by creation of jobs and accumulation of wealth.
We are happy with success of entrepreneurs and we understand their concerns.
That is why today we announce the New course of economy aimed on the overcoming of deficiencies and creation of much better business environment in Georgia.
"The New course" means:
Employment of the new Tax Code that will alleviate press of tax administration on entrepreneur.
Employment of the mechanism of forgiving for violation and advance notice; as well as employment of taxation ombudsman institution in order toe make entrepreneur feel safer.
Employment of such mechanism of charging that in case of mistake charging will not make business enterprise stop and ruin; even in the case when the owner on purpose violates specific norms and the enterprise must not stop and continue working to give people possibility to earn.
Preparation of new qualified personnel and retraining of the old in the way that each of them shall be oriented on success and assisting to the business; so that working with them shall be understandable and comfortable for the businessman; so that feeling of fairness should come from them.
Construction of new infrastructure that will make much easier procedures and services, decreases bureaucracy and time of service to minimum. For example to make one hour enough for all the procedures customs clearance.
I remember that when I came here earlier, there was cargo collected for weeks, including perishable goods and nobody took responsibility. Customer pointed on broker, broker pointed on the new obscure tax regulation, etc. In one word, there were absolutely unpredictable conditions. Now the process will go so briefly as it happens when getting driver's license. The next reform touched entrepreneurial sphere as it can bring much better economical effect.
To say it briefly, of course, tax payment is all entrepreneurs' participation in the development of the society and is duty of everybody. If not tax payment we cannot create good system of education, we shall not have good healthcare and social care, construct roads, create new tourist infrastructure, basis for welfare, cannot construct railway, etc. No doubt that participation in the development of the society is the duty of everybody including each person involved in entrepreneurial activity.
The state mustn't choke the taxpayers, but must hold their hand and as true partners must go all the way to the finish. As a result of new course we will receive a business oriented state structure that will not work only to reveal inaccuracy, but will cooperate with business in order to help it develop in just and lawful atmosphere. For example someone might made a mistake in registering list number and this person would be charged for this mistake. Often, when patrol stops you on the street they only give you a verbal warning. The tax officer should act the same way. Their interest mustn't be to ambush someone in order to find some faults, but their aim is to build relations and cooperation on trust and support.
The first swallow is this registering economic zone that we are visiting now. Two new will open in nearest months in Poti and Adlia. This will substitute so called terminals that were associated with total ignorance of entrepreneurs' interests, with shaking the nerves of transporters, huge corruption, complicated procedures, injustice and precious time lost without any aim for those businessmen, for whom every single day means a lot.
Before it was a huge trap of money and I know very well what was happening here. When a person used to come - a customs officer and broker used to take money separately, then you had to pay 20-30 GEL to watchman... so it was absolutely uncertain bureaucratic procedure. These were the remains of old system, which was in direct connection with injustice.
You remember that I was not desirable guest of customs office several times, because in case of warning they used to create order and illusion of a calm atmosphere. This is why we had dismissed several custom chiefs some in Sarpi and some in other places. What we saw at terminals and customs was a basis of my special anger.
I have never praised this department, but I have to praise tax and customs offices.
From now on transporters and business people will receive absolutely different experience here, than what they were used to. Economical Zone of Concluding reduces bureaucracy a lot and instead of three or four service offices carriers will be able to receive full service in one window.
Besides this customs fees will be diminished almost to half - if earlier customs clearance of one load was 450 GEL now this procedure will be reduced to 200 GEL. And what's most important time of service will be reduced significantly for the carriers that were used to wait for days and weeks. It might be unbelievable, but I want to repeat - customs clearance will take only an hour from now on.
Economic zones of such ultra-modern design will substitute Poti and Batumi terminals that will be opened in one month, by January.
It is very important that new cadres were hired - very pretty excellent graduates of Universities - their salaries start from 600 GEL, some will have even 1200 GEL.
It is a very good start for those who just graduated universities and colleges - special busses drive them to work and they have very nice buffets that we have just visited. I am glad that new people and new aspirations came into our system.
We were concentrated on infrastructure development, improvement of tax code and recovery of system by appointing new cadre this year.
The rehabilitation of main infrastructure is almost over. We have adopted new tax code that will get activated from January 1 and custom's code is just abolished. The training process of new cadre and re-training of old specialists is going on.
Now this three components - renewed infrastructure, new legislation and new cadre equipped with education will gather together in new economic course. This will significantly improve business-environment, will give more confidence to entrepreneurs, will create more fair conditions and as a result will provide rapid move towards wealthy Georgia.
All of us must start moving towards this direction.
Congratulations to you not only with the opening of this new terminal, but with the change of total psychology.
The government did everything in order to develop business. Now everything must be done in order to fulfill all, what we have spoke about and our business to use this easiest and simple system.
This is truly a huge step forward.
Thank you.