MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Genadi Arveladze participated in the Competition and Consumer Rights Protection III International Conference. The conference was jointly organized by the Competition and Consumer Protection Agency, the National Bank, the National Energy and Water Regulatory Commission, the State Insurance Supervision Service and the Communications Commission. 

The Deputy Minister welcomed the participants of the international conference and expressed hope that the discussions planned within the framework of the forum will contribute to the sharing of best practices in the field of competition and consumer rights protection between the countries. In addition, the conference had the opportunity to cover such critical issues as the effective enforcement of anti-dumping policy, protection of consumer rights in the e-commerce sector, etc. 

The Deputy Minister focused on the importance of competition and consumer protection in the development of the country's economy. According to Arveladze, within the framework of the Association Agreement with the European Union, Georgia became a country that can boast of a transparent and fair competition policy. In addition, in this regard, Georgia is ahead of other candidate countries. “Especially in recent years, we have adopted a number of new regulations in the field of competition and consumer protection, as a result of which our legislation has significantly approached the European one with effective enforcement mechanisms. This progress was also noted in the enlargement report,” – Genadi Arveladze stated.

The Deputy Minister noted that the consumers are one of the main driving forces of the economy. “Our task is to strengthen a market where every consumer will be able to benefit from high-quality products and services at affordable prices as a result of strong competition. Within the framework of the Association Agreement, Georgia has become a country that can boast of a transparent and fair competition policy," – Genadi Arveladze noted.

Members of the Georgian government and parliament, as well as representatives of business and academic circles, also participated in the opening of the conference.