Boers people in Georgia

General information about Georgia

Georgia is a Eurasian country of the Caucasus region which is located between Western Asia and Eastern Europe. The country's whole western border is situated along the Black Sea, while Georgia's northern region has a long and common border along with Russia. The country was a part of the Soviet Union until it gained independence in 1991. Still, after that, while struggling to adapt a free-market economy through structural reforms, it faced a severe economic crisis during most of the 1990s.

However, it's international economic standing greatly improved in 2007, with fast-growing tourism making a significant contribution to its economy. The country still has persistent poverty prevailing, particularly in its rural areas. Georgia is administratively divided into nine central regions and two autonomous republics. The parts are subdivided into 69 districts.

About agriculture of Georgia

Market reforms have continued since the declaration of Georgia's independence. The main sectors of the economy are agriculture (tea, citrus, fruit, tobacco, wine), machine building, metallurgy, hydro resources.

Most produced agricultural plants are the following:

• Georgian horticultural crops: watermelon, melon, pumpkin, and zucchini.
• Georgian vegetables: eggplant, radish, pumpkin, squash, potatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, and beets.
• Georgian cereals: peas, rice, beans, lentils, corn, soybeans, millet, barley, oats, lentils, rye, and wheat.
• Georgian technical crops: cotton, tobacco, hemp, cork, sunflower, as well as flax.
• Georgian fruits: cherries, peaches, cherries, apricots, apples, quinces, lemons, tangerines, strawberries, blackberries, pears, plums, and oranges.

Georgian agricultural products such as tea, grapes, and citrus are used for foreigner parents. The main trading partners of Georgia are Russia (18 per cent), Turkey (14 per cent), Azerbaijan (12 per cent) and the USA (6 per cent). Concerning the gross national product: Structure (%) - Agriculture 32; 1 per capita - $ 860.

Boers people working in agriculture of Georgia

Considering the favourable physical-geographical location of Georgia, it is noteworthy to say that the country's natural resources and agricultural potential make the country one of the desirable working places for foreigner Boers people and farmers. Even though the decline of Georgia's agriculture in economic terms has been steady, the country remains a significant safety net for the various rural population in terms of food security.

In 2014, the government of Georgia had taken several bold steps to allow the country's agricultural sector by inviting foreign investors, Boers people and other experienced farmers from different countries, such as India, China, etc. Adding to that, they are not allowed to buy and then develop Georgia's arable land, that was something that most Georgian farmers had not been able to do for multiple reasons.

However, in 2019, Georgia's new constitution banned giving the country's land to others, except the citizens of Georgia. That means, foreigners, Boers people and farmers are now disallowed to buy Georgian land and to grow and develop anything; That is caused because Georgia's mostly foreign-owned banks refuse and will no longer allow it as collateral.

According to this constitution, with a few exceptions, Georgian agricultural land may only be owned by the state, a Georgian citizen or a Georgian-owned entity. The provision came into work in December. Indeed, there had been a de-facto ban on Boers people and foreigners buying Georgian farmland since 2017, when the government of Georgia imposed a moratorium on purchases.

Then, it followed widespread public concern about outsiders who were scooping up too much of Georgia’s fertile soil, especially in strategically sensitive areas. About 40 per cent of the country’s population (according to 2017) live in rural areas, and less than 10 per cent of land is arable, while foreigners and Boers people own about 10 per cent of the land.