On December 9, Transparency International - Georgia (TI) issued a statement emphasizing the lack of effective efforts made in the previous year to combat high-level corruption and state capture.

The group emphasized that more and more incidents of suspected high-level corruption are becoming public yet are going unnoticed by the appropriate authorities. An additional observation made by TI-Georgia was that there are alarming dynamics symptomatic of kleptocracy, where polarization is intentionally pushed, society is divided, the opposition is splintered, and the media and civil society are under attack. It bemoaned that the state remains controlled, and there is no political will to reverse this development within that framework.

According to TI Georgia, the appointment of the new Auditor General has raised concerns that the financial control of state institutions may be weakened. At the same time, the ruling party representatives' statements indicate no real desire to appoint an independent public defender. According to TI Georgia, the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) score for Georgia has not changed considerably over the past ten years, which noted that this implies a halting of efforts to combat corruption since real improvements would have resulted in a considerable increase.

Indeed, the group noted that almost all anti-corruption reform processes had been put on hold since 2020, and Georgia has not yet confirmed its continued participation in the OECD/ACN anti-corruption assessment. Additionally, the organization stated that the country had not developed a national anti-corruption strategy in the past two years.

Prime Minister: "Georgia leads in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in fighting corruption"

On the same day, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said that Georgia is ahead of numerous EU and NATO members in the battle against corruption among Eastern European and Central Asian countries.

"Georgia has maintained its leadership on International Anti-Corruption Day. Corruption is the most serious threat to any democracy, economic prosperity, or public stability. Therefore, since taking office, we have made major efforts to tackle corruption by reforming anti-corruption legislation, enhancing government transparency, and encouraging public participation in the processes. The results are impressive, as we have maintained our status as one of the world’s leading countries for the past six years," he added.

"Georgia remains a regional leader in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, even surpassing a number of EU and NATO member states. Foreign allies and high-ranking political figures have praised our development. The irreconcilable fight against corruption remains our top priority, boosting the country’s accountable and open governance," the PM stated.

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