The grape harvest in Kakheti, a region of eastern Georgia famous for its winemaking. Photo CC-by-2.0: Joe Colne / Flickr. Some rights reserve.
In this article on Georgia’s proposed ban on selling agricultural land to foreign buyers, Sopo Japaridze makes a number of excellent points: in policy, the needs of Georgia’s rural population should have priority. They make up more than 40% of Georgia’s population, yet are often neglected. She also makes the sensible point that Georgia imports far too much food (though it is unlikely to be quite the 80% that she cites). However, the proposed solution — banning foreign land ownership — is unlikely to be the solution for either of these problems.
Right now, the main problem in Georgia is that most land is not actually being farmed. By some estimates, as much as 50% of Georgia’s arable land lies fallow, being used for grazing at best. Foreign investors can contribute to putting this land to use by bringing skills, capitals, and access to international markets. These investors can also bring employment, and can help to revive agriculture, through some anchor investments. Foreign investments have already led to employment, to increased standards, and have helped to export Georgian products to Germany, Japan and other destinations. It might have been useful to highlight this dimension, given the current discussion.
