EBRD Voices Concerns Over Georgia’s Foreign Agents Law: Investment Climate at Risk”.

In a media briefing ahead of the upcoming annual meetings in Armenia, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Odile Renaud-Basso, expressed her concerns over the draft “foreign agents” law in Georgia. This legislation, currently making its way through parliament, would require organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence.

The EBRD’s regional director for the Caucasus, Alkis Vryenios Drakinos, also noted that while the investment climate has not yet changed, the draft law poses a threat to what could otherwise be a strong year for the bank’s investments in Georgia. Despite this, the EBRD has been active in the country, with projects in the banking sector, public sector, and private sector investments totaling over 100 million euros.

Renaud-Basso emphasized that Georgia has seen economic benefits from reform progress and Brussels and Washington have advised Tbilisi to abandon the legislation in order to avoid damaging its chances of European Union membership and a broader Euro-Atlantic future. The tension surrounding this draft law could impact the private sector and investment climate potentially deterring foreign investors.

To date, the EBRD has invested 5.16 billion euros in Georgia