Mamuka Bakhtadze

Mamuka Bakhtadze (Georgian: მამუკა ბახტაძე; born 9 June 1982) is a Georgian politician who served as the country's Prime Minister from 20 June 2018 until 2 September 2019. Bakhtadze announced his official statement about resignation via Facebook post. He had previously served as Minister of Finance (2017–2018) and, prior to that, executive director of the Georgian Railway company (2013–2017).

Mamuka Bakhtadze მამუკა ბახტაძე
Bakhtadze during the MSC 2019
13th Prime Minister of Georgia
In office 20 June 2018 – 2 September 2019
President	Giorgi Margvelashvili Salome Zourabichvili
Preceded by	Giorgi Kvirikashvili
Succeeded by	Giorgi Gakharia
Minister of Finance
In office 13 November 2017 – 13 June 2018
Prime Minister	Giorgi Kvirikashvili
Preceded by	Dimitri Kumsishvili
Succeeded by	Nikoloz Gagua
Personal details
Born	9 June 1982 Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union[1]
Nationality	Georgian
Political party	Georgian Dream
Alma mater	Tbilisi State University, Georgian Technical University, Moscow State University
Signature

Education and early career

Born in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, then part of the Soviet Union, Bakhtadze graduated, in 2003, from the Tbilisi State University with a degree in Management and Microeconomics and from the Georgian Technical University with that in Electromechanical Engineering. He obtained MBA from the Moscow State University in 2005 and the INSEAD business school in 2010. After serving at the supervisory board of the Georgian International Energy Corporation from October 2010 to November 2012, Bakhtadze became CEO of Georgian Railway LLC, the state-owned railway company of Georgia, in March 2013.[2]

Government

On 13 November 2017, Bakhtadze was appointed Minister of Finance in the second cabinet of Giorgi Kvirikashvili. Kvirikashvili stepped down as Prime Minister on 13 June 2018, citing his differences with Bidzina Ivanishvili, a recently reappointed influential chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, and triggering the resignation of the entire cabinet.[3]

Georgian Dream nominated Bakhtadze, 36 years old at that time, as Kvirikashvili's successor. By that time, he was largely a political unknown; 55% of respondents had not heard of him according to a survey conducted by the International Republican Institute in May 2018, two weeks before Bakhtadze's nomination. He was widely considered to have been Ivanishvili's personal choice and a close friend of the Ivanishvili family.

Bakhtadze's incoming cabinet won the parliamentary vote of confidence with 99 votes in favor to 6 against on 20 June 2018.[4] The cabinet was reconfirmed, with 101 votes in favor to 12 against, by the parliament on 14 July after the previously announced structural reforms in the cabinet ministries were implemented.[5] Bakhtadze pledged to continue Georgia's Euro-Atlantic integration and implement "fundamental and innovative reforms". Bakhtadze's nomination was heavily criticized by the parliamentary opposition, especially, European Georgia and United National Movement.[4][5]

Prime Minister

Bakhtadze's first foreign visit was to Brussels in July 2018, during which he reaffirmed in his meetings with European officials that Georgia remained committed to its European Union aspirations.[6] In his address to the UN General Assembly in September 2018, Bakhtadze denounced the ongoing Russian military presence in breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia and spoke of Georgia's new peace initiatives offered to these entities.[7]

Bakhtadze unveiled various economic and political reform plans in 2018, such as those in education system[8] and related to green economy, including the Clean Transport policy.[9] He was involved in a campaign to support Salome Zourabichvili's candidacy to the presidency of Georgia and welcomed her election as a "victory for democracy" in November 2018.[10]

On 2 September 2019 Bakhtadze resigned from his position as prime minister. In a letter he published on Facebook he stated that he "decided to resign because I believe I have fulfilled my mission at this point."[11]

References

1. "Prime Minister of Georgia – Mamuka Bakhtadze: Biography". Government of Georgia. Archived from the original on 6 January 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
2. "Finance Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze Tapped to be Georgia's Next Prime Minister". Civil Georgia. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
3. "Georgian Finance Minister Nominated As Prime Minister". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
4. "Bakhtadze's Cabinet Wins Confidence". Civil Georgia. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
5. "Parliament Confirms Bakhtadze's New Cabinet". Civil Georgia. 15 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
6. "PM Bakhtadze: Georgia Firm on EU Integration Path". Civil Georgia. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
7. "In UNGA Speech, PM Bakhtadze Speaks of Russian Occupation, Engagement with Abkhaz, S.Ossetians". Civil Georgia. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
8. "PM Bakhtadze Presents Education Reform Plan". Civil Georgia. 14 September 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
9. "PM Bakhtadze Presents 'Clean Transport' Plans". Civil Georgia. 22 October 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
10. "PM Bakhtadze Says Presidential Election 'Victory for Democracy'". Civil Georgia. 30 November 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
11. "Georgian Prime Minister Resigns, Says He Has 'Fulfilled Mission'". RFE/RL. 2 September 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2019.