Permit Reforms Give Entrepreneur, Community Reason to Cheer
A modern children’s playground is replacing the ugly garages and old, dirty trash containers that used to fill a large yard across from the Zugdidi Railway Station in Georgia.
Parents and children from the neighborhood, which includes two 70-unit apartment buildings, “are counting the days to when the playground is finished,” said Elguja Gurieli, director of Tavadi I, a local construction company.
The company won a government contract to build recreation infrastructure in Zugdidi, the main city of western Georgia’s Samegrelo region. The 20 workers Gurieli hired for 600 lari each for 50 days are working to complete the job.
New streamlined construction procedures have hastened the day when the children can play in their new park. Before recent reforms, Gurieli would have had to navigate a complex series of conflicting laws and regulations that caused headaches for contractors and permitting officials.
“It was an enormously chaotic process with a lot of loopholes for corruption,” said David Esebua, Zugdidi municipal construction supervisor.
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| “This playground will make us into champions!” exclaims Gocha Konjaria, 12, about the new recreational facility which replaced a blighted lot in Zugdidi |
Amendments to the Regulation on Issuance of Construction Permits and Permit Conditions, adopted by the Government of Georgia with U.S. Government support in June 2006, streamlined the process. Small projects like the Zugdidi playground benefit from expedited procedures. For larger projects, the new regulations greatly simplify document requirements and reduce the time required to put new construction into use by 30 days for residential and commercial properties and by 60 days for industrial projects. A 30-day reduction has been estimated to save Georgian contractors about $10 million annually. USAID’s Business Climate Reform consultants worked with officials from the Construction Department of the Ministry of Economic Development to revise the regulations.
Gurieli has worked under both the old and the new rules for obtaining construction permits and says that the simplified procedures allow local self-governments to meet the high demand for outdoor playgrounds and sports facilities much faster and at less cost. Entrepreneurs also find the new regulations convenient.
“This playground project is my favorite. For the first time in my work history, I didn’t have to waste time and money to visit different agencies to seek a permit; for the first time in my life, I have actually enjoyed the public and the government’s involvement in my work process,” Gurieli said.
Chikhladze Enver, 56, who lives near the playground, says he loves the “pleasant noise” when construction equipment starts up each morning, signaling that work on the playground continues. He took an active part in dismantling the unsightly garages that once filled the yard, including his own.
“I foresee a better future. My children will not waste time hanging around the railway station anymore. Instead, they will grow up in a safe and healthy environment,” he said.
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