Flag of Abkhazia inside a car cabin. Photo: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

30 March 2020, 10:50

Coronavirus situation affects trade and tourism in Abkhazia

In Abkhazia, the state of emergency has forced the owners of trading outlets to curtail operations; while hotel owners have cancelled reservations, entrepreneurs inform.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 28-April 20, Abkhazia is under the state of emergency due to the threat of coronavirus spread.

After the introduction of the state of emergency, Vladislav Khishba, the owner of several outlets in the Sukhumi marketplace, had to distribute or destroy the unsold foodstuffs, as they got spoiled. "We understand the need for such measures, but it all happened very abruptly. We had bought a lot of foodstuffs, got ready for a great demand, hoped to sell everything on the weekend, but we were not allowed to finalize the work," Mr Khishba told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Trade and tourism are the only sources of income for the majority of Abkhazians, a private entrepreneur, Khibla Ashba, who owns a hotel in Sukhumi, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to her story, over the past week, the demand for reservations has doubled, but entrepreneurs are forced to cancel reservations. "I think these were Muscovites (who were reserving rooms in Sukhumi hotels), who wanted to spend the quarantine in Abkhazia. Today, we cancel all reservations and return the money," Ms Ashba said.

In her opinion, many entrepreneurs will not be able to return to the market after the end of the state of emergency. "Those who rented the premises have refused from it; they won't be able to earn money during the quarantine. Tenants will be left without rental fees. Our already weak economy will eventually collapse," Khibla Ashba has suggested.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 29, 2020 at 07:02 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Anna Gritsevich Source: CK correspondent

All news
НАСТОЯЩИЙ МАТЕРИАЛ (ИНФОРМАЦИЯ) ПРОИЗВЕДЕН И РАСПРОСТРАНЕН ИНОСТРАННЫМ АГЕНТОМ ООО “МЕМО”, ЛИБО КАСАЕТСЯ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ ИНОСТРАННОГО АГЕНТА ООО “МЕМО”.

March 27, 2024 16:51

March 27, 2024 14:49

March 26, 2024 23:13

  • Analysts dispute on risks of IS'* intensifying in Northern Caucasus

    After the terror act at the Crocus City Hall, in Northern Caucasus, there is a risk of intensification of militants of the IS*, although no terror acts on civilians have not been observed there since 2018. This was noted by Sergey Goncharov, a veteran of special services, and Andrei Koshkin, a military expert.

March 26, 2024 20:26

March 26, 2024 19:40

News archive