Georgia has maintained the status of a frontrunner in the Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Policy Index involving the European Union’s Eastern Partnership countries, with the latest ranking revealed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.

The report covering Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine placed the country at the top in 11 out of 12 categories, ranging from institutional and regulatory framework, operating environment, insolvency and second chances, entrepreneurial training and women's entrepreneurship.

The categories also involve small and medium entrepreneurship skills, access to finance, state procurement, standards and technical regulations, internationalisation of small and medium entrepreneurship, business promotion services and innovative policy.

The Georgian Economy Ministry said the ranking highlighted the country’s “rapid” post-Covid economic recovery and highlighted the globally recognised high standards in regulatory and business environments, while also nothing SMEs in Georgia benefited from simple registration, a preferential tax regime, expanded e-government services, simplified access to finance and more systematic use of Regulatory Impact Assessment.

The OECD's 2024 SME Policy Index, in its fourth edition, assessed Eastern Partnership countries based on policies supporting small and medium enterprises aligned with the Small Business Act for Europe and international best practices.

Conducted every four years, the index evaluates countries across five critical areas, including responsible government, entrepreneurial human capital, access to finance, market access, and innovation and business promotion.

The latest index was developed with the support of the European Training Foundation and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, and with the financial assistance of the European Union.