Georgian businessman Shalva Alaverdashvili, the founder of an associaiton of hotels and restaurants who manages six hotels in the capital Tbilisi, talks to an AFP reporter at a restaurant of Gallery Palace hotel in Tbilisi on December 16, 2024. Hotels and restaurants shut down, housing demand down, investment projects suspended and the threat of devaluation: Georgia's political crisis is already having an economic impact. All of the hotels and restaurants in the city centre have suffered since the government, accused of an authoritarianism by crisis, decided to leave until 2028 its bid to join the European Union leading to protests. The government has not shown any compromise and opponents have rallied day and night in front of the parliament. Contributing around 8 percent to GDP, tourism is a vital source of income for the country. (Photo by Vano SHLAMOV / AFP) (Photo by VANO SHLAMOV/AFP via Getty Images)