UAE-Georgia Cepa to enter into force in the first quarter of 2024

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The UAE-Georgia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) will enter into force in the first quarter of 2024, ushering in a new era of prosperity for several non-oil sectors like logistics, hospitality, various business services and telecommunications among others.

This was revealed by ministers on both sides at a press conference in Dubai on Tuesday, where greater access for UAE exports entering the Georgian market through the reduction or removal of tariffs on nearly 99 per cent of products was discussed.

The deal comes amid rapidly advancing trade and investment ties between the UAE and Georgia.

Speaking to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the event, Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade said: “The percentages of the tariff reductions for UAE products has been almost 95 per cent while 99 per cent has been given by us to their products. We’re looking at it from different angles. So, there will be a reduction in tariff that will bring in added value in to our GDP. So that compensates for our tariff reduction.”

In 2022, bilateral non-oil trade was worth $468 million, representing an impressive 110 per cent growth compared to 2021.

The UAE now accounts for more than 63 per cent of the total volume of Georgia’s trade with Arab countries, while its investments into Georgia represent 5 per cent of its total FDI, making the UAE Georgia’s sixth-largest global investor.

“When we you look at the best practices globally, it shows that countries manage to double their economies in a very short period because of the free trade agreements they sign,” the minister added.

“So this brings in huge added value into our GDP. Speaking about the Georgian agreement, many sectors are going to benefit because of the huge percentage of liberalization. Liberalisation will give market access to our companies to be treated like Georgian companies and vice versa. There’s a huge potential when it comes to logistics, hospitality and certain business services, financial telecommunications to benefit from the agreements on both sides,” Zeyoudi added.

The signing of the agreement had taken place earlier in Georgia’s capital Tblisi during a UAE delegation’s visit to the country, in March 2023, which included a meeting of the UAE-Georgian Business Forum.

Solar farm in Georgia in works with UAE collaboration

Both sides committed to enhancing their our business ecosystems to attract FDI, foster innovation and accelerate diversification, with the deal creating a platform for knowledge-sharing and joint-ventures that will future-proof both economies and drive long-term, sustainable growth.

Levan Davitashvili, Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia said: “We expect significant potential investments from the UAE into Georgia. For example, currently we are working with on renewable energy projects. There is a pilot project for a solar farm in Georgia. Hopefully, we will sign a joint venture agreement within the next month and move to the implementation phase. But we are not limited with this pilot project. We have a global ambitious agenda to invest more in renewable energy and energy is one of the important priorities.”

He added: “But in energy sector we are not limited only with hydropower. This will be combined with solar and wind energy, onshore wind, which has also great potential but this project can be shared without potential partners in the UAE.”