Becoming a Super-Reformer
If you want to know how you start from nothing and build up an economy - with the various reforms needed - here is an excellent prop. Kakha Bendukidze, the engineer of Georgia's reforms since 2004, talks about how these came about and what they have achieved so far in a Cato Institute forum. The video is about 45 minutes, worth the time.
Under Bendukidze's leadership, Georgia has moved from 137th on the Ease of Doing Business in 2003 to 15th in 2008. Many other problems remain, political as well as economic. But there is no question that the economic reforms have spurred a previous moribund economy. They have also had a regional effect: Azerbaijan has studied Georgia's reforms and has itself become a top reformer.
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Georgia continues to reform, not shying away from the one area that is typically considered one of the most challenging, requiring long-term efforts: making local courts more efficient.
The IFC will hold a series of discussions with Georgian judges on November 21 and 22 to improve the governance of the local court system. A lack of confidence in the Georgian judiciary prevents businesses from taking their commercial disputes to the courts.
[insert link to www.georgiacourts.org]
The Canadian Development Agency and BP are financing these reform efforts.
[insert link to http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/media.nsf/content/SelectedPressRelease?OpenDocument&UNID=96BFF684C6F21816852575060058350E?cid=IFC_IFCNewsflash_D_INT]
In the previous 6 Doing Business reports, court reforms have only been reported once for Georgia. Doing Business 2007 describes how Georgia established specialized commercial sections in the courts. And that the Supreme Court can now decide which cases its reviews. Before, it dealt with every case sent by the lower courts. There is also a proposal to establish 2 specialized bankruptcy courts so as to pool expertise.
Doing Business currently reports 285 days, 36 procedural steps and costs about 30% of a 4,240 USD claim to resolve a simple commercial dispute through the Tbilisi civil courts. Most of the time, 150 out of 285 days, is spent on enforcing the judgment. It might be useful, during the discussions with the judges, to focus also on what happens after the courts issues their judgment.
[insert link to http://www.doingbusiness.org/ExploreTopics/EnforcingContracts/Details.aspx?economyid=74] “
Posted by: sabine | Nov 20, 2008 3:37:21 PM