Thursday, March 21 2019 17:36

ArmInfo.Armenian Ambassador to Georgia Ruben Sadoyan, in the framework of a working visit to the administrative district of Guria and the Autonomous Republic of  Adjara, held talks in Batumi with the head of the government of Adjara Tornike Rijvadze.

As the press service of the Armenian Embassy in Georgia told ArmInfo,  at the meeting issues of bilateral economic cooperation and  decentralized contacts were discussed.

Sadoyan happily stated that the recreation areas on the Black Sea  coast are favorite places of Armenian citizens and expressed hope  that the caring attitude of the Georgian authorities will give new  impetus to increase the number of Armenian tourists.

In this context, the head of the Adjara government also expressed  satisfaction with the fact that Armenian tourists are among the  leaders in visiting Georgia, and the Georgian side is doing  everything in its power to make them feel comfortable on Georgian  soil.

 Rijvadze, spoke about the business environment and investment  conditions in Adjara, stressing that steps are being taken to  increase local production and improve services.

The parties mutually emphasized the importance of raising awareness  in order to expand mutually beneficial cooperation in the economic  sphere, which can also be facilitated by the organization and holding  of business forums and meetings.

Sadoyan highlighted the issue of the Ahaltskha-Adigeni-Khulo-Batumi  road, which is important because it will significantly reduce the  distance to Georgian ports and recreation areas.

To note, according to the National Administration of Tourism of  Georgia, in 2018, Georgia was visited by a record number of  foreigners - about 8.7 million, which is 9.8% more than the 2017  data. Of the total number of international visits, 4.8 million were  made to Georgia for the purpose of tourism - an increase of 16.9%.

The top ten countries in terms of the number of visitors to Georgia  are as follows: Azerbaijan - 1 million 424 thousand 610 visitors, an  increase of 9.5% compared with 2017 data; Russia - 1 million 404  thousand 757 visitors, an increase of 23.8%; Armenia - 1 million 268  thousand 886 visitors, a decrease of 1.4%; Turkey - 1 million 98  thousand 555 visitors, an increase of 9.1%; Iran - 291 thousand 70  visitors, growth of 3%; Ukraine - 177 thousand 58 visitors, an  increase of 4.2%; Israel - 156 thousand 922 visitors, an increase of  36.4%; Poland - 66 thousand 903 visitors, an increase of 36.8%;  Germany - 64 thousand 486 visitors, an increase of 49.7%; Belarus -  60 thousand 241 visitors, growth of 42.9%