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Tbilisi Business Forum: Innovation and Digital Economy
April 8, 2016Tbilisi
The World Bank, Georgian Innovation and Technology Agency (GITA) and Business Georgia magazine co-hosted a Business Forum: Innovation and Digital Economy. Within the forum agenda, World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends, was launched in Georgia at the Tbilisi Technology Park. The forum has demonstrated the support to innovation in business in Georgia, the success achieved and next steps yet to be taken. GITA, Innovation and Development Fund, Young Innovator’s Center and other organizations working in the field of business innovation have shared their vision. Representatives of the companies with diverse profiles have showcased respective innovation projects and spoke about their initiatives. Among the panelists were private companies, such as TBC Bank, WISSOL Group, Geocell, VREX, ACT Global, Start-Up Nest.

Within the framework of the forum, the Co-Director of the World Development Report (WDR) 2016: Digital Dividends, Uwe Deichmann, presented to the audience the main messages of this latest report by the World Bank Group.

The new Bank report says that while the internet, mobile phones and other digital technologies are spreading rapidly throughout the developing world, the anticipated digital dividends of higher growth, more jobs, and better public services have fallen short of expectations, and 60 percent of the world’s population remains excluded from the ever-expanding digital economy.

According to the WDR, the benefits of rapid digital expansion have been skewed towards the wealthy, skilled, and influential around the world, who are better positioned to take advantage of the new technologies. In addition, though the number of internet users worldwide has more than tripled since 2005, four billion people still lack access to the internet.

Read more, here.

Download the event agenda by clicking on the image below. 

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Key Panelists

  • Dimitry Kumsishvili

    Vice-Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development
    Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Vice Prime Minister since 9 January 2015. Before worked as a Vice Mayor of Tbilisi; 2012-2015 March – First Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development ; Chairman of National Agency of State Property; Chairman of the Committee on the Rules of Expropriation of Property for Pressing Public Needs; Chairman of Intergovernmental Commission on the State Property Management. Among other positions occupied previously are the following: Business Development Director, “Palitra Media”; Chairman of the Supervisory Board, “Rational Solutions”; CEO, “Startup & Innovative Business Investment Fund”; First Deputy General Director, “Cartu Bank”; Member of the Supervisory Board, Tbilisi Interbank Currency Exchange; Member of the Supervisory Board, “Global Contact Consulting” and other. Graduate of the Tbilisi State University (1998), Faculty of Economics, majoring in Accounting, Control and Audit. Speaks English and Russian. Married with three children.

  • Uwe Deichmann

    Co-Director, World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends
    Uwe Deichmann is an economic geographer in the World Bank’s Development Research Group. His research interests are in the geographic aspects of development. His recent work has included issues of urban development, the role of infrastructure in promoting regional growth, and the impacts of natural hazards and global change on economic development. He has been a principal author of the World Development Report 2009 "Reshaping Economic Geography." Prior to joining the World Bank he worked for the UN Environment Program and the UN Statistics Division. He holds a Ph.D. in Economic Geography and Regional Science from the University of California at Santa Barbara.

  • Irakli Kashibadze

    Chairman of Georgia's Innovation and Technology Agency
    Irakli Kashibadze has a wide range of the work experience in fields of Innovation and Technology starting from a very early age. He established and was Chairman of the Young ICT Experts Association in Georgia, and worked in policy development in various management positions at both the Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development. For a number of years, he served as Head of Information Technologies Development Division at the Communications and Information Technologies Department. Irakli has initiated a variety of measures to promote innovation and a creative mindset in Georgia. His involvement in formation of Information Society in Georgia led to establishment of the Presidential Council of Information Technologies, and numerous projects and seminars, such as : Internet Business Georgia, Initiative of Development of Mobile Information Society, Competition of young web-designers, National Internet Competition, “Business Marathon 20=200”, IT Innovation Week, First Hackathons in Georgia, to mention a few. He is the founder of Navigator, the only Georgian magazine focused on ICT and Science, and has published more than 100 scientific and technological articles about the Internet, Communications, Computer technologies and The Information Society.
  • Georgia focuses on digital development
    "Developing digital technologies and a digital market is very important for us as it can promote inclusion, efficiency and innovation in Georgia,” said Georgia’s Economy Minister Dimitry Kumsishvili. These words were in a speech the Minister gave at a special forum today at the new Tbilisi Technology Park.
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  • ინოვაციები და ციფრული ეკონომიკა – ტექნოპარკი ბიზნეს ფორუმს უმასპინძლებს
    ინოვაციები და ციფრული ეკონომიკა – აღნიშნული სახელწოდებით ბიზნეს ფორუმი 8 აპრილს 12:00 საათზე საქართველოს ტექნოლოგიურ პარკში გაიმართება (ინოვაციების ქუჩა N7 ოქროყანა). ინოვატორთა ჰაბში შეკრებილ საზოგადოებას ამჯერად ბოლო დროის საინტერესო და წარმატებით განხორციელებულ პროექტებს ქართული კომპანიები თავად წარუდგენენ. ღონისძიება მსოფლიო ბანკის, ჟურნალ Business Georgia-სა და საქართველოს ინოვაციების და ტექნოლოგიების სააგენტოს ერთობლივი ინიციატივით ტარდება.
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  • დიმიტრი ქუმსიშვილი ინოვაციებისა და ციფრული ეკონომიკის თემაზე გამართულ ბიზნეს-ფორუმს დაესწრო
    საქართველოს ვიცე-პრემიერი, დიმიტრი ქუმსიშვილი ტექნოპარკში, ინოვაციებისა და ციფრული ეკონომიკის თემაზე გამართულ ბიზნეს-ფორუმს დაესწრო. ღონისძიებას მსოფლიო ბანკის წარმომადგენელი უვე დეიჰმანი, ინოვაციების და ტექნოლოგიების სააგენტოს ხელმძღვანელი ირაკლი ქაშიბაძე და მიწვეული სტუმრები ესწრებოდნენ. „ციფრული ეკონომიკის განვითარება ძალიან მნიშვნელოვანია ჩვენი ქვეყნისთვის. ჩვენ არაერთი მნიშვნელოვანი რეფორმა განვახორციელეთ ბოლო წლების განმავლობაში. პირველი დივიდენდები ციფრული რეფორმიდან მივიღეთ მაშინ, როდესაც ანალოგიური მაუწყებლობა გადავიყვანეთ ციფრულ მაუწყებლობაზე. ამ დროს ჩვენ მოვახერხეთ ის, რომ პრაქტიკულად, სიხშირეების ნაწილში დავნერგეთ ნეიტრალიტეტის პრინციპი და დღეს იმ კომპანიებს, რომლებსაც ფართოზოლოვანი მობილური ინტერნეტის ლიცენზიები გააჩნიათ. ასევე გააჩნიათ ვალდებულება, ფართოზოლოვანი მობილური ინტერნეტით სრულად დაფარონ საქართველო შემდეგი ერთი წლის განმავლობაში“, აღნიშნა დიმიტრი ქუმსიშვილმა.
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Vice-Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Dimitry Kumsishvili (right) and Co-Director of the World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends, Uwe Deichmann (left) 

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Photos: Leonid Mujiri

World Bank Supports Georgia’s Investment in Innovation-driven and Knowledge-based Economy with a new project. The World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved an International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan of US$ 40 million to Georgia for the Georgia National Innovation Ecosystem (GENIE) Project. This Project will support the implementation of the Government’s strategy to build a competitive and innovative economy that is ready for the future.

The development objective of the project is to increase innovative activities of firms and individuals and their participation in the digital economy. This will be achieved through investments in regional and community innovation centers, enabling wider adoption of Internet by households and small businesses, developing digital economy skills and capacity of businesses to be innovative, and improving access to finance for innovators.  

GENIE deepens the World Bank Group’s ongoing partnership with Georgia by complementing and leveraging ongoing infrastructure investments and policy reforms. The Project will benefit from improvements in regional infrastructure as it seeks to connect innovators and small businesses outside the main cities to global trade and knowledge networks. It complements strategic and institutional reforms to boost competitiveness, supported through the Development Policy Operation (DPO) program.

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