The Republic of Abkhazia newspaper informs that Abkhaz lawmakers have approved three bills prepared in close cooperation with Russia. The first bill concerns investment, the second one -the budget and the last one - the civil code. The Russian authorities have been consulting Abkhaz lawmakers for the last several months and Russian experts helped their Abkhaz colleagues to elaborate bills aimed at improving investment, protecting business and improving the judicial system.
The move was made in the framework of the 2008 Russian-Abkhaz Friendship Agreement, according to which the parties are expected to unify the legal systems of the two countries, including laws concerning economic activities, taxes and social insurance. The republic is now set to draft an arbitration code. The parties have also agreed to continue working together in order to improve Abkhaz law. The issue has recently been discussed at Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov's meeting with Abkhaz lawmakers. The parties have decided to enhance mutual cooperation in the spheres of defense, social insurance and public healthcare.
* * *
As Vestnik Kavkaza has reported earlier, a new financial institution is going to emerge in Georgia. The Bank of Development is going to be formed as a result of the amalgamation of several governmental funds. The corresponding bill has already been submitted to the Georgian Parliament. The idea itself was voiced by former prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili in March.
The new institution is expected to finance long-term strategic projects, in which commercial banks normally do not invest, David Onoprishvili told the Free Georgia newspaper. According to President of the Georgian Association of Banks Zurab Gvasalia, the establishment of the Bank of Development means that the country is going to shift to a three-level banking system, which will include the Central Bank, the State Bank and commercial banks. State banks exist in many countries, including highly-industrialized ones, he says. There is a similar institution in Turkey - Eksibank, which plays a serious role in the economic development of the country, he informs.
Economics specialist Irakli Lekvinadze believes the establishment of the Bank of Development will be beneficial. Even though there are a lot of financial institutions providing funds, the bank will play a crucial role as it will provide investment as well as state guarantees, the expert believes.
At the same time, the former head of the country's National Bank, Roman Gotsidze, believes the establishment of the state bank is a counterproductive project. It is a return to a socialist model, he says. According to the expert, the use of budget funds for such a project may be dangerous. The country's foreign debt now constitutes 1.5 billion US dollars, Gotsidze underlines.
* * *
The Voice of Armenia newspaper informs that the new government of the country has decided to cancel one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by the former cabinet - the construction of a technology park in Gumri, in which the state holds a 49-percent share. The government says that the company responsible for the project has done nothing so far.
The idea of the technology park was first presented to residents of Gumri by Economy Minister Nerses Yeritsyan, who promised fast economic growth, industrial development and establishment of new jobs. In the framework of the project a number of plants, which do not operate now but once provided thousands of people with jobs, were expected to be relaunched. However these dreams did not come true. First the cabinet changed the whole idea, saying that the park will unite from 5 to 10 IT companies and now it has decided to drop the whole project.
Analyzing the government's decision the newspaper writes that the new cabinet is ready to cancel any project launched by the previous government. For instance, the new government has already cancelled the luxury tax introduced by the Sarkisyan cabinet. According to the newspaper, such moves will hardly make society trust the new cabinet.
