According to the results of the 2023 National Assessment of Transparency and Accountability of Georgian Municipalities (LSG Index), the average score of municipalities is 35% (on a 100% rating scale), 5% higher than the indicator achieved in 2021. It can be thus said that, according to the 2023 data, the LSG Index has shown growth.
Significant, double digit growth (between 10% and 38%) was observed in 18 municipalities, although similarly significant decline (between 10% and 32%) was shown in 6 municipalities.
According to the results of the 2023 assessment, the block I indicator—proactive publication of public information—improved by 7% compared to the results in 2021 (from 27% to 34%). An approximately similar increase in the indicator was observed in block II—e-governance (from 32% to 38%), while in the third block—promotion of citizen participation and accountability—the indicator, on the contrary, worsened by 3% and amounted to 20% (decreasing from 23% to 20%).
According to the opinions expressed by the assessors involved in the evaluation process, the results were affected by a number of factors:
First, by improving the access of municipalities to electronic resources and the capabilities of websites of municipalities. Among them, with the development of the electronic management portal of municipal services—https://ms.gov.ge/, which is available to all municipalities.
Second, the restrictions imposed during the 2020-2021 pandemic significantly reduced the ability to communicate with the public. Therefore, some indicators in 2023 returned to the pre-pandemic benchmark. This especially affected the assessment results of the criteria of block III—supporting citizen participation and accountability.
Third, the evaluation period (2021-2022) did not coincide with the local self-government election period, and as such, some municipalities used the organizational and personnel stability, as well as the positive experience received in the 2021 assessment, to improve and/or maintain results.
Fourth, during the assessment process in the previous years, a lack of knowledge regarding the standards/requirements of the Index in the municipalities became clear. In response to this challenge, a distance learning tool (www.tvitmmartveloba.ge) for the Index methodology was developed in 2021. The course is free and available to any interested persons. In 2021-2023, over a hundred people completed the course, which may be one of the most important reasons for the improvement in the indicators in the municipalities.
Fifth, a significant positive influence on the results of the assessment was due to current programs by international donor organizations aimed at strengthening transparency and accountability in municipalities, as well as individual initiatives by civil society organizations and expert support. Positive results in this direction and increases in the LSG Index were observed especially in the municipalities of Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti, Imereti, Samegrelo, and Zemo Svaneti regions. It should be noted that after the completion of some international and civil society organization programs, the results of the municipalities in the Index declined sharply—an unfortunate tendency. However, some municipalities maintained high results and further developed the acquired experience.
Based on the results of all of the national assessment results (2017, 2019, 2021, 2023), it has become possible to point out municipalities with consistently high results, these being: Telavi, Ozurgeti, Lagodekhi, and Zugdidi municipalities, the indicators for which have not fallen below 39% during any of the assessments. It should be noted that during each assessment year, transparency and accountability underwent a dynamic growth in the following municipalities: Poti City, Lagodekhi, Ambrolauri, and Oni. These results point to a readiness and institutional attitude aimed at implementing high standards of transparency and accountability.
Additionally, the assessment results indicate that geographic (mountainous areas) and demographic (ethnic minorities) factors influence the quality of transparency and accountability in municipalities. The average results of municipalities with these characteristics lag behind those of other municipalities. However, 2023 showed an improvement in their results.
It is also noteworthy that the municipality of the capital of Georgia, where 1/3 of the total population of the country resides, has been showing a decreasing trend in the LSG Index results since 2019.
A growing trend in the awareness and use of the Index has been observed both in the state and nongovernmental sectors. For example, the Index was used as an indicator for one of the strategic goals outlined in the 2020-2025 state decentralization strategy and the 2019-2023 mountainous areas development strategy. Additionally, local non-governmental or international organizations often rely on the indicators from the Index when assessing the degree of transparency and accountability of municipalities.
The 2023 assessment of municipalities based on the Local Self-Government Index was conducted by the Institute for the Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), in collaboration with its partner organizations, with financial support provided by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Danish government.
Please find the full Report.
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