Former Deputy Minister of Economy Nika Alavidze is challenging the government’s repeated claim that more than GEL 700 million has been saved through optimization in state-owned enterprises (SOEs). He argues that if this figure is accurate, the public deserves to know exactly where the money went. While such savings would be positive, Alavidze notes they also represent a serious admission that SOEs had been operating with deep inefficiencies for years.
Alavidze’s main question concerns the contradiction between the alleged savings and the recent increase in electricity tariffs. According to him, if hundreds of millions of lari were truly saved and intended to be reinvested in strategic infrastructure, including the energy sector, then it is unclear why households and businesses were still required to shoulder an additional financial burden. Without transparency, he says, the government’s narrative looks more like political messaging than evidence-based reform.
The former deputy minister emphasizes that the public needs a detailed, audited breakdown of the savings: which enterprises generated them, through what mechanisms, how much represents actual cash savings, and what portion consists of delayed or deferred expenses. Only with this information, he argues, can citizens understand how the claimed GEL 700 million was used and whether it genuinely contributed to infrastructure upgrades or other public needs.
Alavidze concludes that until such transparency is provided, the government’s claim cannot be considered proof of successful reform. Instead, it stands as an acknowledgment of long-standing inefficiencies within state-owned enterprises. And as long as electricity tariffs continue to rise despite these alleged savings, he says, the public is left with a fundamental question: If so much money was saved, why did citizens still have to pay more?
