Republic of Ajara to target casino and hotel investors

The Congress, which is a public/private initiative between the government and existing commercial businesses currently operating in Ajara, is taking place across 4th, 5th and 6th of September.

Levan Varshalomidze, the Chairman of the Autonomous Republic of Ajara, is the key personality whose vision is driving the development of Batumi, a town of 200,000 inhabitants which has already featured in the pages of The Economist, The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Time Magazine, The Washington Post and most recently in the UK’s Guardian newspaper.

He explained, “My vision is to create a vibrant, multi-faceted, cosmopolitan resort destination.  At the hub of Batumi’s bustling leisure economy will be a structured, sensibly regulated casino sector. At the Casino Investors Congress we will be sharing our vision and detailing the business-friendly, fiscal and regulatory framework we are offering investors.”
 
Gambling tourism is a priority sector for the Government and some 43% of total investments have been targeted at the broadly based tourism sector.  The rapidly developing hospitality infrastructure already features international hotel brands including the Sheraton, Radisson, Hilton, Trump, Kempinski and Holiday Inn.  With gambling prohibited in neighbouring countries, Georgia has implemented legislation which is both liberal and progressive.

Although gambling legislation is applied nationally, Batumi has a number of advantages in comparison to other Georgian cities. A Batumi casino licence is us$ 150,000 compared to us$ 3 million in other regions of Georgia. Furthermore, operators going into partnership with hotels with a minimum 100 rooms or who build their own are able to acquire a casino license free of charge for the first 10-years of operation.