Due to the so-called Lockdown, which is called point restrictions in Georgia, bookstores in large cities ceased to function on November 28, directly impacting publishing activities.
As we read in the Georgian Publishers and Booksellers Association's open letter, online sales are allowed, but it does not offset the losses companies operating in this sector received during the first lockdown.
They said no new books had been published for months, and the sale of existing supplies was complicated. According to Gvantsa Jobava, Deputy Director of the Georgian Publishers and Booksellers Association, assistance is needed for the sector, particularly the exemption from corporate income tax and bookstores' opening.
"The government must remember that the publishing sector plays an important role in the country's education system. We create textbooks for schools. We have not stopped for a minute during the current year. We have been participating in competitions announced by the Ministry. We have been creating new textbooks. Therefore, of course, the government should know that this sector needs help. Stagnation and suffering of this sector should not be in anyone's interest, especially when schools' situations are hard, and it's difficult for children to learn. On top of that, they can not have textbooks? Taking all this into account, we believe that the government should pay attention to us and take into account the problems that exist in our sector today," she said.
