Corruption researcher: construction boom in Georgia ‘a problem’

Construction activity in Georgia has increasingly become a problem rather than a benefit, according to anti-corruption researcher Besik Donadze, who said weak infrastructure planning and governance failures were undermining development projects.

His comments came on Monday as plans have been announced for a 70-storey Trump Tower Tbilisi development linked to the Trump Organisation brand.

Donadze said that while construction in principle brings economic value, it must be accompanied by proper infrastructure development, warning that this balance is currently missing.

He argued that in some cases, construction projects are being driven by political and business interests rather than public benefit, and linked this to what he described as poor management, nepotism and corruption risks in the system.

According to him, the factors turn potentially positive investment into long-term harm for the country, particularly when infrastructure planning did not match the scale of urban development.

Donadze also claimed that some high-profile business and branding activity in Georgia is connected to politically influential groups, framing it as part of a wider system of propaganda and interest-driven decision-making.