LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR TBILISI ... - LED

The list of Tbilisi competitors in the region includes the cities of Ukraine, Turkey, Russia,
Azerbaijan, Armenia and the countries of central Asia that aspire to the position of the
regional service centre.
Due to the political situation there are no cooperation links in the region and, therefore,
Tbilisi has no competition in Northern Caucasus as well as in the neighbouring parts of
Russia. Moreover, none of the Ukrainian cities attempts to play an active role in
Caucasus so there is no alternative for Tbilisi.
Despite dynamic economic exchange with Turkey, in its eastern part there are no strong
urban centres that could be able to compete with Tbilisi.
That leaves us with Baku and Erevan, the capital cities of Azerbaijan and Armenia as
Tbilisi’s natural and historical rivals. In Central Asia it is Kazakhstan with its strong
political and economic position that boasts the role of a regional leader. Its authorities,
businesses and organisations are very active and have achieved the position of an
important economic partner as well as the key investors in the region.
Kazakh cities, mainly Astana and Alma-Ata, are likely to become regional centres that
influence neighbouring countries and attract investors, events and people. Numerous
investments in Astana and the plans of further local development make the city a regional
leader. Also, the historical, institutional and demographic potential of Alma-Ata positions
this city as another significant competition in the region. The political, social and economic
situation in other countries of Central Asia results in the limited potential of other cities in
the region, so they cannot threaten the leading position of Tbilisi. Therefore, the cities
eventually included in the comparative analysis were Astana, Alma-Ata, Baku and
Erevan.
The City team and the consultants carried out the SWOT analysis of Tbilisi, relating its
position in the region to Astana, Alma-Ata, Baku and Erevan.
By means of the SWOT competitive assessment in the system of coordinates the X axis
(horizontal) the strengths and opportunities of Tbilisi were placed. Taking into
consideration the time factor and analysing the prospective changes that are likely to
happen in Tbilisi and in its rival cities the areas of threats and opportunities were placed
on the Y axis (vertical).
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