Region / Country specific information - Georgia
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larger map )
Background:
Georgia was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 19th century.
Independent for three years (1918-1921) following the Russian
revolution, it was forcibly incorporated into the USSR until
the Soviet Union dissolved
in 1991. Ethnic separation in Abkhazia and South Ossetia,
poor governance, and Russian military bases deny the government effective
control over the entirety of the state's internationally recognized territory.
Despite myriad problems, progress on market reforms and democratization
support the country's goal of greater integration with Western political, economic,
and security institutions
Location:
Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between Turkey and Russia
Geographic coordinates:
42 00 N, 43 30 E
Area:
total: 69,700 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 69,700 sq km
Land boundaries:
total: 1,461 km
border countries: Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km, Russia 723
km, Turkey 252 km
Coastline:
310 km
Climate:
warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast
Terrain:
largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the north
and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhet'is
Dablobi (Kolkhida Lowland) opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River Basin
in the east; good soils in river valley flood plains, foothills
of Kolkhida Lowland
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Mt'a Shkhara 5,201 m
Natural resources:
forests, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron ore, copper, minor
coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils allow for
important tea and citrus growth
Land use:
arable land: 11.21%
permanent crops: 4.09%
other: 84.7% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
4,700 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
earthquakes
Environment - current issues:
air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy pollution of Mtkvari
River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies
of potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of
the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements
Geography - note:
strategically located east of the Black
Sea; Georgia controls much
of the Caucasus Mountains and the routes through them
People
Population:
4,934,413 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 18.6% (male 466,743; female 449,440)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male
1,628,757; female 1,744,922)
65 years and over: 13% (male 252,031; female 392,520) (2003 est.)
Median age:
total: 34.8 years
male: 32.6 years
female: 37 years (2002)
Population growth rate:
-0.52% (2003 est.)
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Georgia
local short form: Sak'art'velo
former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic
local long form: none
Government type:
republic
Capital:
T'bilisi
Independence:
9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 26 May (1918); note - 26 May 1918 is the date
of independence from Soviet Russia, 9 April 1991 is
the date of independence from the Soviet Union
Economy
Economy - overview:
Georgia's main economic activities include the cultivation of agricultural
products such as citrus fruits, tea, hazelnuts, and grapes;
mining of manganese and copper; and output of a small industrial sector producing
alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages, metals, machinery, and chemicals.
The country imports the bulk of its energy needs, including natural gas and
oil products. Its only sizable internal energy resource is hydropower.
Despite the severe damage the economy has suffered due to civil strife, Georgia,
with the help of the IMF and World Bank, has made substantial economic
gains since 1995, achieving positive GDP growth and curtailing inflation.
However, the Georgian Government suffers from limited resources due to a chronic
failure to collect tax revenues. Georgia also suffers from energy shortages;
it privatized the T'bilisi distribution network in 1998, but collection
rates are low, making the venture unprofitable. The country is pinning its
hopes for long-term growth on its role as a transit state for pipelines and trade.
The start of construction on the Baku-T'bilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the
Baku-T'bilisi-Erzerum gas pipeline will bring much-needed investment and job opportunities.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $15 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 20%
industry: 25%
services: 55% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
54% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.3%
highest 10%: 27.9% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
37.1 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
5.2% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
2.1 million (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
industry 20%, agriculture 40%, services 40% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate:
17% (2001 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $499 million
expenditures: $554 million, including capital expenditures
of $NA (2001 est.)
Industries:
steel, aircraft, machine tools, electrical appliances, mining (manganese
and copper), chemicals, wood products, wine
Submitted by Kevin Cain, residing in Georgia;
Biking in Georgia - A different experience.
Biking in Georgia is certainly different and the country does not really
have a biking culture. There was some biking activity in the old Soviet
days, mainly speedway and some motocross, and the farmers and police have
always used Ural bikes with sidecars as a cheap means of transport, but
it was never really seen as a leisure activity until recently.
The Georgian Traffic Law and Highway Code have no provisions for motorcycles;
there is no training and no form of driving test. Any Georgian biker who
has the appropriate stamp on his driving licence must merely convince
the issuing office that he is competent (and normally a small present
helps). There is no requirement for insurance and indeed no means of insuring
a motorcycle here. Of course helmets are not compulsory and I have even
been stopped by the police, to be told that it was not right to wear a
helmet in Georgia! The police in Tbilisi have recently been equipped with
some old Moto Guzzi’s, and though they do wear open face helmets,
they do not fasten the straps!
The situation is slowly changing as far as the number and type of bikes
is concerned. When I first arrived on my BMW R1100GS in 1997, it was one
of the first foreign motorcycles in Georgia, and then a Gold Wing was
imported followed by a Super Tenere. One or two other expats followed
my example and imported KTM’s from a dealership in Istanbul. A Bikers
Club (Camelot) was formed and consisted mainly of old Soviet machines
as well as beautifully restored BMWs from the Second\World War (of which
there are many just lying around in bits). Some of the more ingenious
Georgians have constructed chopper type bikes from what was available.
In the past year there has been an increase in the number of bikes imported,
mainly second hand from Europe, including some very fast sports bikes.
I myself was riding a Honda CBR1100XX Super Blackbird for a while, but
it is entirely unsuited to the poor roads in Georgia and it was impossible
to really enjoy the bike here. My R1100GS was far more suited to the local
conditions, and I was also able to make a further return trip to Europe
on this bike. It has now been replaced by a new R1150 GS Adventure, which
is perfect.
A further problem facing Georgian bikers is a complete lack of any dealership
or workshop. All spare parts must be individually imported, but there
are several good mechanics available to do regular maintenance. Because
of the lack of formal training and the fact that most journeys are limited
to a small radius around Tbilisi, there is considerable ignorance concerning
the correct usage of modern motorcycles, and most Georgians will not believe
me when I say that 80% of braking should normally be via the front brake.
They ride with considerable abandon in traffic and most of the bikes are
dropped regularly, fortunately with minimum damage to the riders. Motorists
are also unused to seeing bikes on the road. The Bikers Club is trying
to do some basic training and I have tried to help training by supplying
videos, but there is much more that needs to be done.
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