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Lectures and Trainings

Public Lecture on Reforming the Public Sector in Georgia

2005 / 10 / 07

On October 6, 2005 the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies organized a two-day public lecture of Ms. Ruth Richardson, former Minister of Finance of New Zealand. The lecture participants included GFSIS fellows and public administrators. The guest speaker delivered her views on the reforming processes of the public sector in Georgia. She discussed the current economic conditions in Georgia and the government reforms necessary to sustain the country on the path to prosperity.

Ms. Richardson argued that countries like Georgia, which lacks reforms, experience four types of structural deficiencies:

  • Governance — elected politicians have no strategic control and the government lacks a long-term reform strategy. According to Ms. Richardson, Georgia has an enormous strategic deficit.
  • Performance — state agencies lack the capacity and incentive to do their jobs properly.
  • Institutional—the rules fail to prevent or discipline harmful behavior such as corruption. The large state bureaucracy is a major cause of corruption and inefficiency.
  • Financial— there is a persistent pattern of account and budget deficits and rising debt in the government.  Rising debt leads to higher interest rates, which can stifle economic development.

In the view of Ms. Richardson, for the reforms to work in Georgia, not only must the reforms be comprehensive, but also a huge attitudinal change is needed.

 

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