Editing Economy of Georgia (country) (section)

== History ==
Before the 20th century Georgia had a largely agrarian economy.

Georgia's modern economy has traditionally revolved around [[Black Sea]] [[tourism]], cultivation of [[citrus fruit]]s, [[tea]] and [[grape]]s; mining of [[manganese]] and [[copper]]; and the output of a large industrial sector producing [[Georgian wine|wine]], metals, machinery, chemicals, and textiles.<ref>[[Nana Bolashvili]], Andreas Dittmann, Lorenz King, Vazha Neidze (eds.): ''[[National Atlas of Georgia]]'', 138 pages, Steiner Verlag, 2018, {{ISBN|978-3-515-12057-9}}</ref>

Like many [[Former Soviet Union|post-Soviet]] countries, Georgia went through a period of sharp economic decline during the 1990s, partially due to persistent [[tax evasion]]. "During that period, international financial institutions played a critical role in Georgia's budgetary calculations. Multilateral and bilateral grants and loans totaled 116.4 million lari in 1997; they totaled 182.8 million lari in 1998."<ref>{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQWWBQAAQBAJ&dq=Like+many+post-Soviet+countries%2C+Georgia+went+through+a+period+of+sharp+economic+decline+during+the+1990s%2C+due+to+persistent+tax+evasion&pg=PA186 |title=Georgia Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments |date=2012-03-03 |publisher=IBP Inc. |isbn=978-1-4387-7443-5 |language=en}}</ref>

Economic recovery had been hampered by the separatist disputes in [[Abkhazia]] and [[South Ossetia]], resistance to reform on the part of some corrupt and reactionary factions, and the [[Asian financial crisis]] of 1997.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wolff |first1=Stefan |title=Georgia: Abkhazia and South Ossetia |url=https://pesd.princeton.edu/node/706 |website=Princeton Edu |access-date=2 October 2023}}</ref> Under the [[leadership]] of President [[Eduard Shevardnadze|Shevardnadze]] (in office 1995–2003), the government nonetheless made some progress on basic market reforms: it liberalized all prices and most trade, introduced a stable national currency (the [[Lari (Georgia)|lari]]), and massively downsized government.

During the late 1990s more than 10,500 small enterprises had been privatized, and although privatization of medium- and large-sized firms had been slow, more than 1,200 medium – and large-sized companies had been set up as joint stock companies. A law and a decree establishing the legal basis and procedures for state property privatization reduced the number of companies controlled by the state.

The [[United States]] began assisting Georgia in the process of reform soon after the country gained independence from the [[Soviet Union]]. Gradually, the focus shifted from humanitarian to technical and institution-building programs. Provision of legal and technical advisors was complemented by training opportunities for parliamentarians, law enforcement officials, and economic advisers.