Estimating competitiveness of Georgia’s Regions

Evgeni Baratashvili, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Georgian Technical University, Full professor Jandri Zarandia, Doctor of Economics, associated professor, Sokhumi University; Kakhaber Tsimintia, Doctor of Economics, associated professor, Sokhumi Universi

“The designated project has been fulfilled by financial support of Georgian National Science Foundation (Grant # GNSF/ST06/2-067).

Any idea in this publication is possessed by the author and may not represent the opinion of Georgian National Science Foundation itself”
Regional competitiveness: current approach overview.
Estimating competitiveness of a region as an important territorial and economic unit enables to reflect specific conditions characterizing a region, to define region’s ability of showing, creating, using and keeping competitive advantages.
Giving forecasting characteristics is emphasized while forming competitive methodic. The most widely spread approach is discussing criteria of competitiveness in the direction of maintaining society’s progress through the country (Amstrong M., Teylor J. (2000) Regional Economic and Policy. Third Edition. Blacwell Publishers, Great Britain: MPG Books, Bodmin, Cormwoll. Sachs J.D., Warner A. M. (2000) The World Competitiveness Report. Davos)
As for a region, it is discussed as an important circumstance for forming companies’ competitiveness. For example, in Porter’s ‘rhomb’ a region is presented by unity of local conditions, the following are important among them: demanding customers, strong competitors, strong suppliers of resources and powerful complex of assisting sectors (Industrial Cluster) ( Porter M. (1993) International Competitiveness)
Calculating methodic of regional competitiveness. It implies the following stages: selecting indicators, gathering data and estimating region’s competitiveness on the basis of complex index and data scaling. We have presented the following indicators for estimating regional competitiveness:
1) Indicators of region’s competitive advantage.
Region’s resource advantage; region’s investment advantage, region’s infrastructure advantage, region’s innovative advantage, region’s informative advantage, region’s institutional advantage, progressiveness of regions sector structure.
2) Outcome indicators of regional competitiveness.
Whole regional product value per capita. Export share in total regional product value; total regional product growth rate.
According to the above mentioned indicators, competitiveness complex indexes will be calculated for each region.
Analysis competitiveness of Georgia’s regions
Calculations made by the present methodic lead to the following ranging of Georgia’s regions according to 2005 competitiveness index: Tbilisi – 0.78; Autonomous Republic of Adjara – 0,39. Kakheti region – 0.37; Kvemo kartli region – 0,36; Samegrelo-zemo Svaneti region 0,33; Guria region – 0,32; Mtskheta-Mtianeti region – 0,31; Shida kartli region – 0,26; Imereti region – 0,25; Samtskhe-Javakheti region – 0,20; Racha-Lechkhumi and kvemo Svaneti region – 0,14.