Kakha Bendukidze

Kakha Bendukidze კახა ბენდუქიძე
Bendukidze in 2012 at the Kakha Bendukidze University Campus (Photo by Gaga Kapanadze)
Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development
In office 1 June 2004 – 14 December 2004
President	Mikheil Saakashvili
Succeeded by	Lekso Aleksishvili
Ministry of Economical Reforms Coordination
In office 14 December 2004 – 24 January 2008
President	Mikheil Saakashvili
Head of Chancellery of the Government of Georgia
In office January 2008 – February 2009
Personal details
Born	(1956-04-20)20 April 1956 Tbilisi, Georgia
Died	13 November 2014(2014-11-13) (aged 58) London, United Kingdom
Spouse(s)	Natalia Zolotova
Children	Anastasia Goncharova
Website	http://kakhabendukidze.com/

Kakha Bendukidze (Georgian: კახა ბენდუქიძე; 20 April 1956 – 13 November 2014) was a Georgian statesman, businessman and philanthropist, founder of the Knowledge Foundation and head of the supervisory board of Agricultural and Free Universities.

A biologist by education, Bendukidze started his own business, Bioprocess, which manufactured biochemicals for scientific research in 1987. Soon he became known as one of Russia’s leading libertarians. He led a working group on tax and currency within the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and pressed for changes in tax policy, which ultimately included adoption of a flat 13 percent tax rate. In Russia, he was a strong opponent of government intervention in the economy, a view that put him at odds with President Vladimir Putin. Soon Bendukidze sold his stake and moved back to Georgia.

After the Rose Revolution, shortly after returning from Russia, he was appointed as Minister of Economy by former President Mikheil Saakashvili and the late Prime Minister Zurab Jvania in 2004. He served as Georgian Minister of Economy (June–December 2004), Minister for Reform Coordination (December 2004 – January 2008) and Head of the Chancellery of Government of Georgia (February 2008 – February 2009) and was the author of liberal reforms that overhauled Georgia’s post-Soviet economy.

The appointment of Bendukidze and his service as the Minister of Economics gave Georgia a yearly 9.3% economic growth in 2004-2007 and almost four times more foreign investments. The government managed to decrease the taxes fourfold, the number of licenses by 90% and liberalize the labour market. These liberal steps were what lead to the formation of the previously almost non-existent middle class.