Roman Gotsiridze: “The rate of price increases for food and medicine is outpacing the growth of pensions for people up to 70 years old.”
FactCheck concludes that Roman Gotsiridze’s statement is TRUE.
Pensions for people under 70 will rise by 5.7%, from GEL 350 to GEL 370, whilst pensions for those 70 and older will increase by 10%, from GEL 450 to GEL 495, according to the preliminary 2026 state budget. The minimum pension growth rate is regulated by Law of Georgia on Pensions and the planned increases comply with its requirements.
Whilst pension growth outpaces overall inflation, consumer prices for food and medicine rose faster than average in the first three quarters of this year – namely 7.9% for food and 8.2% for medicine. Prices rose 11.9% for food and 9% for healthcare in September alone – the last month of the reporting period. Low-income individuals spend a large share of their limited income on essential items like food. Furthermore, personal inflation can exceed the general rate for pensioners whose pension is their only income.
Inflation is rising across all major categories. Consumer prices grew 2.6% in the first quarter, 3.6% in the second and 4.6% in the third. Food prices rose 4.4% in the first quarter as compared to the same period last year, 8.5% in the second and 10.8% in the third.
It should also be noted that both the number of pensioners and the share of the budget allocated to pensions are increasing year over year. Although pension expenditures generally grow faster than funding for other institutions, inflation in some cases still outpaces pension growth.
Considering the factual accuracy, FactCheck concludes that Roman Gotsiridze’s statement is TRUE.
Analysis
Member of the 10th Parliament, Roman Gotsiridze, posted regarding pension increases and inflation, stating: “The base pension (received by pensioners under 70) will rise by only GEL 20 next year, reaching GEL 370, according to the 2026 state budget. This increase is lower than then price growth in the goods segment on which pensioners spend more than 80% of their income.
Food prices have risen 12% and healthcare costs by 9%, with other sectors seeing increases, as of September this year.”
Pensions for people under 70 will rise by 5.7%, from GEL 350 to GEL 370, whilst pensions for those 70 and older will increase by 10%, from GEL 450 to GEL 495, according to the preliminary 2026 state budget.
Pension increases are regulated by Law of Georgia on Pensions. Pensions for those under 70 must rise in line with the average inflation of the past 12 months, but by no less than GEL 20, under the law. Pensions for those aged 70 and over must increase by the sum of 80% of the average of the last 12 months’ inflation and the real GDP growth over the past six quarters.
Average inflation over the past 12 months constituted 2.6% according to the data published by the National Statistics Office.
The average economic growth rate was 9.1% over the past six quarters. Adding 80% of this figure to the 12-month inflation rate gives a total of 9.9% (9.1 × 0.8 + 2.6 = 9.9).
Nothing is violated from a legal standpoint and pensions are increasing by the established minimum. However, it is important to note that inflation rose almost every month in 2025 and the price growth for food and medicine significantly exceeded general inflation.
The preliminary budget draft will be submitted to Parliament in September, using August as the reference month for inflation data. Whilst consumer prices indeed rose by 2.6% from September 2024 to August 2025, the growth rate reached 3.5% from January to August 2025 and 3.6% from January to September. Inflation reached 4.8% in September alone with food prices rising by 11.9%.
The inflation rate was the lowest since 2013 in 2024 – at 1.1% with food and non-alcoholic beverages recording zero inflation. Although healthcare costs increased by merely 0.7%, price growth accelerated noticeably toward the end of the year.
Graph 1: Inflation Rate as Compared to the Same Period Last Year
Source: National Statistics Office of Georgia
GeoStat calculates overall inflation based on changes in the prices of 305 products and services divided into 12 groups. The largest share is allocated to food and non-alcoholic beverages – a group of 92 items with a relative weight of 32.2% giving it the biggest influence on overall inflation. For reference, a 10% increase in bread prices has a greater impact on overall inflation than a 50% hike in notary fees. Calculating inflation quarterly by product groups also highlights these disparities in growth rates.
Graph 1: Inflation Rate as Compared to the Same Period Last Year (2025)
Source: National Statistics Office of Georgia
Statistical calculations rely on averaged data. Low-income individuals spend a large share of their limited income on food. Pensioners fall into this low-income category, thus if a pension is their only source of income, their personal inflation is likely higher than the average inflation rate.
Access to healthcare is also critical for pensioners. Whilst insurance covers part of medical services, state insurance does not cover medications. From January to September 2025, vascular dilators rose by 11% and painkillers – 21%. Amongst food products, oil increased by 22%, potatoes – 14% and bread – 10% over the same nine-month period.
A total of 882,000 people received age-base pensions as of September 2025, with 47% receiving GEL 350 and 53% receiving GEL 450. Furthermore, a 20% supplement applies to 85,000 pensioners in highland regions.
In addition to nominal increases in pensions, the number of pensioners is also rising. A total of 663,000 people received age-based pensions in December 2022; this number had grown to 763,000 by December 2019 and has reached 882,000 by September 2025. Pension expenditures are increasing faster than the nominal penison amounts year over year. The share of the budget allocated to pensions is also rising. Spending on pensions alone will exceed the combined budgets of Defence and Edudaction Ministries. Funding for the Ministry of Defence has increased nominally by 145% since 2012 whilst allocations for pensions have grown 370%. The fact that pension spending is rising faster than the state budget does not change the reality that inflation still outpaces pension growth in some cases.
Graph 3: Share of Budget Allocated to Pension Provision in Government Expenditures
Source: Ministry of Finance of Georgia
Price growth for food and healthcare exceeds the pension increase for people under 70. Prices for medications and certain food items have also risen at a rate higher than pensions for those over 70. Pensioners spend a large share of their income on food and medicine, both of which have grown faster than average inflation. Considering the factual accuracy, FactCheck concludes that Roman Gotsiridze’s statement is TRUE.
