Title of the project: “Development of e-Participation in Georgia”

Financial Support of the Project: United State Agency for International Cooperation (USAID), “East-West Management Institute" (EWMI) program “Public Policy, Advocacy and Civil Society Development in Georgia” (G-PAC)

Budget of the Project: $ 59 800,00

Duration of the project: 01 June 2012- 31 May 2013

From 1 June 2012 to 31 May 2013 “Institute for Development of Freedom of Information” (IDFI), in cooperation with “Center for Post-Soviet Studies” (CPSS) is implementing a project “Development of e-participation in Georgia” with the financial support of the grant “Partnership for Change”, within the framework of the USAID program of “East-West Management Institute” “Public Policy, Advocacy and Civil Society Development in Georgia” (G-PAC).

The purpose of the project is, based on the research and analysis of the best international examples and practice of electronic governance and electronic involvement, and in order to assist development of modern e-communications in Georgia, to familiarize the Georgian society with the necessary tools for enhancing the level of their involvement in political planning and to find the ways to adopt and improve the governmental/civil platforms.

In order to achieve this purpose, the organization is planning to meet a number of goals/implement tasks:

- Taking into account the international experience, to prepare a research about the necessary techniques, innovative projects, platforms, necessary for e-participation and e-involvement;

- To define the components of e-involvement used by the Georgian public institutions and political parties and find out the existing challenges by studying the communicational elements of their web-sites and their social networks;

- To work out recommendations for Georgian public structures by studying foreign examples and mechanisms of e-participation;

- Based on the mentioned recommendations, to advocate the development of modern means of electronic format of communication between the society and Georgian government through the governmental web-space and e-engagement;

 - With the help of social networks and new technologies, to inform the common citizens about the importance of e-involvement and the existing resources and leverages;

- In order to increase trust between the society and the public structures and enhance communication between them, to improve the already implemented initiatives and encourage new initiatives, to find new ways, organize discussions;

- To monitor the election campaign covered by electronic media.

The anticipated outcomes of the project are as follows:

- On the preparatory stage the methodology will be prepared;

- On the following stage, a study will be prepared, within the framework of which monitoring of social networks of the governmental institutions, political parties, media, public authorities and independent candidates will be conducted;

- Recommendations for the public sector and the political parties will be worked out;

- Recommendations on legal framework for development of ICT in Georgia worked out;

 - A blog with constantly updated information will be created;

- Public discussions will be organized;

- Meetings with stakeholders will be organized;

- A survey the social network users will be conducted;

- Videos about e-participation will be prepared and uploaded to YouTube channel created for the project;

- Flyers on the main findings of the project will be prepared and distributed;

- Presentations of the first and final results of the project will be organized.

Contract