Candidate nominations for Public Defender from three opposition parties 

On October 18, the opposition groups Lelo, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, and United National Movement put forth Ana Abashidze, Nazi Janezashvili, and Giorgi Burjanadze as candidates for the job of public defender following talks held behind closed doors. 

Giorgi Vashadze, the Leader of Strategy Aghmashenebeli, stated, "Our objective is to remain constant, and the process will disclose the rest." 

Lelo member Davit Usupashvili stated, "We pledged we would support the candidates put forth by the non-governmental sector, and we would also monitor the candidates put forth by others during the selection process." He said everyone has an equal responsibility to handle the situation correctly.

Opposition MP proposes special status for Georgian soldiers fighting in Ukraine

At the plenary session on October 18, Aleksandre Motserelia, an MP of For Georgia party, suggested granting Georgian soldiers who are fighting in Ukraine a special status, arguing that the government should take care of their families. 

According to Motserelia, these soldiers are now battling occupiers in Ukraine. He said, "They fight for a better tomorrow, for Georgia, and for the ideals that took the lives of the nation's first president and late national hero, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, and Merab Kostava." Aleksandre Motserelia said they defend the nation's NATO and EU membership because Georgia has never been so close to reestablishing its territorial integrity. 

In the Russia-Ukraine war, twenty Georgian soldiers have died so far.

The Cabinet of Ministers meets to discuss critical issues 

On October 17, the Cabinet of Ministers met under the chairmanship of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and considered eleven topics. 

The draft law of the Georgian Government on the Approval of the Concept of the Gogni Wind Power Station Project and the Implementation of Accompanying Measures was among the topics covered in the discussion. In the territory of the Terjola and Tkibuli Municipalities, wind farms are planned to be built. The power plant is anticipated to have an installed capacity of 103.5 MW and an annual output of 362 million kWh. The entire project is worth 130 million dollars. 

The members of the government also considered the proposed Georgian government laws on granting entities the status of an international corporation. Eight firms will be given this status as a result of these draft ordinances.

Georgian officials meet with IMF 

On October 15, Koba Gvenetadze, Governor of the National Bank of Georgia (NBG), and Lasha Khutsishvili, the Minister of Finance, held a working meeting with Jihad Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department of the IMF.

The parties discussed Georgia's current economic situation and challenges in the region, noting that high inflation remains one of the main challenges. The IMF positively assessed the actions taken by the National Bank of Georgia to reduce inflation. A significant reduction in the fiscal deficit this year, which should help reduce inflation, was also commended.

"Inflation remains the main challenge, and while the uncertainty persists, the National Bank of Georgia will stick to the tighter monetary policy. The financial sector in Georgia is sound. The appropriate measures taken by the regulator before the pandemic allowed the sector to cushion the adverse impact of the current shocks on the economy. The NBG continues to monitor the compliance with the sanctions in the financial sector imposed by the US, Great Britain, and European Union against the Russian Federation", Koba Gvenetadze said.

The discussion also covered the importance of the arrangement approved by the Executive Board of the IMF and its economic reforms.

"The world is facing difficult challenges, and global inflation will continue to be high shortly. It is also noteworthy that the global economy, which is projected to be half of what it was last year, will shrink further next year due to the tightening financial situation," said Jihad Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department of the IMF. He once again underscored the importance of the monetary policy measures of the National Bank of Georgia, as well as the role of the flexible exchange rate in terms of mitigating the shocks. "It is important to continue structural reforms in the country," Jihad Azour concluded.