Functional Regions and Competitive Economic Sectors in Kakheti, Tbilisi and Kutaisi

On September 19-20, PMC Research participated in a conference organized by the Center for Training and Consultancy (CTC) and presented three research reports which related to identification of functional regions and analysis of competitive advantages.

During the two-day conference, Giorgi Khishtovani, Research Director at PMC Research, presented the findings of the applied research “Identification of Functional Regions and their competitive advantages in Kakheti (Georgia).” This particular study aimed to identify functional regions in Kakheti and to analyze the most competitive subsectors in each of its functional regions. Based on the analysis of conducted interviews, the research report discussed the main challenges and opportunities in these subsectors and offered corresponding recommendations to policymakers.

The outcomes of the second applied research “Analyzing Competitiveness of the Hospital Sector and its Value Chain in the City of Tbilisi – Using Smart Specialisation Methodology Components” were presented by Nino Pataraia from PMC Research’s partner institution in the project – Ilia State University. The third research report “Kutaisi and its Adjacent Areas Competitiveness Study” was presented by Paata Kldiashvili who represented Kutaisi University, our partner in the project.

“The study of functional regions is very new in Georgia, therefore international cooperation can play a defining role in conducting quality research. In this project, PMC Research collaborated with Ljubljana University to delineate functional regions in Kakheti and there are plans to continue this collaboration in the future to inform regional policymaking in Georgia,” explained Maya Komakhidze, a researcher at PMC Research.

All of the above research projects were implemented with the support of the CTC as a part of the EU project “Advancing Regions for Sustainable Development (ARSD).”